Living a Lie Book One: Ignorance is Bliss
by The Unheard Song
Summary: Once upon a time, three little kits were found in a bush with no mother. Once upon a time, a queen lay grooming her four kits, not knowing that most of them were once loners. Once upon a time, the kits grew up believing they were Clanborn. But things won't be peachy forever. Two cats know the truth, a secret that can rip the Clan apart. Ignorance is bliss, my friends. COMPLETE.
1. Prologue & Allegiances

**Hey guys! I know this account has been pretty inactive for like 2 years now. I feel really bad and I'm sorry to say that I won't be completing either of the series I had, ****Untold Secrets**** or ****Heart of Fire: Pool of Cinders****. I'll be leaving them up since a lot of y'all like them and I hate when authors delete stories I like. Anywho! I have been super busy with school, choir, school, and just life in general. Ya know. So there's a plot that I've been working on for a while and I'm quite excited about it. So here're the prologue and allegiances!**

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PROLOGUE

_Night was just settling over the _forest. It was the middle of green-leaf, and nighttime was the only relief from the sun's intense heat.

The forest was completely still. A black tom was lying beneath an oak tree, his paws tucked under his chest, his eyes half-closed in either contentment or thought. A gray tabby she-cat was asleep next to him, four tiny kits nestled at the crook of her belly suckling. There were two black kits, a tom and a she-cat, and two gray kits, also one tom and one she-cat, all of whom couldn't be more than a few days old.

The snapping of a twig in the undergrowth nearby startled the two cats; the queen raised her head and the tom's ears twitched, his eyes sweeping across the dark forest. A gentle downwind breeze swayed the grass, carrying the scent of cats. It wasn't the scent of Clan cats that they had grown used to. Oh, no, it was an all-too-familiar scent of cats, cats that brought blood and fear and death. Cats that, frankly, this tom and his queen had been running from for quite some time now, and cats in which they thought they'd lost in the mountains. Cats that were out for the couple, and now their kits.

"Velvet," the black tom murmured. The gray tabby she-cat rose to her paws, blue eyes wide with fear. Her kits squealed in protest as they were forced to stop suckling.

A tortoiseshell she-cat and a smoky black tom appeared from the bushes. "Thorn. Did you smell that?"

The black tom jumped and spun around, but let his fur lie flat when he saw the two cats in the undergrowth. "Oh. Nutmeg, Coal, it's just you. I know."

"Thorn," Velvet mewed, her voice tight with worry, "what are we going to do? How did they find us here? I thought we were safe, but…they've found us again."

Thorn glanced at his mate and then responded, "Run. You and Nutmeg. Take the kits and run."

"And leave you and Coal to fend for yourselves?" Velvet's eyes widened. Thorn nuzzled her and then gave her a sharp nudge with his nose. "Go. And hurry!"

Nutmeg, the tortoiseshell she-cat, grabbed two of the tiny kits, the two she-cats, and beckoned Velvet with her tail. As if on cue, a massive dark tabby tom leapt out of the undergrowth and bowled into Thorn, hissing and spitting.

Nutmeg spun around and darted into the trees frantically. Another cat, a black and white tom that matched the dark tabby in size, lunged at Velvet's kits, slashing at them with powerful claws. Velvet screeched and dove for them, snatching them into her mouth and scrambling away. The black and white tom attempted to follow her, only to be attacked by Coal.

The dark tabby tom lifted his head, grinning. Beneath him, blood was flowing freely from Thorn's neck, and his blue eyes were glazed over. He was dead. The tom tasted the air and dashed after Velvet, tearing through the trees like a hungry tiger. Velvet's scent trail led him out of the forest. He cleared the stream in one leap and found himself once again surrounded by trees.

Finally he found her. The two tom kits she'd been carrying were gone, but he figured he'd killed both of them already. All he wanted now was Velvet dead. And after a few heartbeats and swipes of his claws, he got his wish. She fell to the ground, blood seeping into the earth.

Swinging his head around, he tasted the air. Now for Nutmeg. He caught a trace of her scent, and plunged into the undergrowth.

Panting, Nutmeg crawled into a bush and placed the two tiny she-cats onto the ground. They were shaken, but unharmed. She knew that Claw had most likely gotten to Velvet, and that he was coming for her and the kits next. Fortunately, the scents of the Clan cats filled the air and covered her trail a bit, since she was so close to their camp.

Nutmeg knew what she had to do. Once Claw found herself, it would lead him right into the bush…and straight to the kits. She stepped out into the open, bracing herself.

A sudden, helpless squeak startled her. Sniffing, Nutmeg skirted a clump of bracken and pushed her muzzle into a bush. Sure enough, Velvet's other two kits were lying there.

The smell of blood made Nutmeg's belly lurch. She pulled both tom kits out of the bush and felt tears well in her eyes. The black tom kit was covered in blood and completely limp. However, the gray tom was only bleeding from his forehead. Nutmeg quickly buried the black kit, licked the wound on the live kit, and carried him to his sisters in the bush. Desperate to cover their scent, Nutmeg found a clump of tansy and surrounded the kits with the strong-smelling herb.

Nutmeg didn't even hear him coming, but when she felt claws pierce her neck, she allowed him to finish her. And as he killed her, she cried. She cried for Thorn and Velvet, for they would never be able to see their kits grow up. She cried for her mate Coal, for hopefully she would get to see him again. She cried for the little black tom, who had only been allowed to live for a few days. But more than anything, she cried in fear that the three kits would be found, and all attempts to keep them safe would have been in vain.

And as Nutmeg died, a single tear trailed gently down her face.

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"So we've already found the poppy seeds, borage, and lavender, correct?" A golden-brown tabby tom pushed his way through the undergrowth. A smaller gray tabby tom followed him, nodding. "Now all we need is some tansy. Mousefoot reported to me that he scented some over here yesterday." He motioned with his muzzle.

The cats squeezed their way out of the undergrowth and around a clump of bracken. The gray tom blinked in surprise. "Mousefoot said it was right here…"

"I smell it," the golden-brown tom meowed, tasting the air. His muzzle to the ground, he padded past the bracken and towards a cluster of bushes. The gray tom bounded after him. "Tansy, in a bush? Are you sure, Grasswave?"

The golden tom, Grasswave, nodded. "Come here, Pebblepaw, and help me get some." He pawed through the bush, searchin for the little yellow flowers. He suddenly gasped.

Pebblepaw craned his neck, trying to see past Grasswave's shoulder. "What is it?"

"Come see," Grasswave murmured, pushing the leaves away and revealing the tansy. Pebblepaw stepped around the older tom and widened his eyes. There amongst the tansy were three tiny kits bundled together, all asleep.

Pebblepaw glanced up at Grasswave. "What are we going to do? They can't be but a few days old."

Grasswave stared at them, shaking his head. "I don't know. Perhaps they belong to a loner. I smell another cat's scent here."

Pebblepaw disappeared into the undergrowth and suddenly called out in a shaky voice, "Grasswave, I think you should see this."

Grasswave dashed over to his apprentice. A she-cat with a tortoiseshell pelt was lying dead on the ground, her fur spiked with blood and huge gashes on her neck. He shivered and padded up to the body. Its scent matched the one he'd picked up around the kits in the bush. "I suppose this was their mother," Pebblepaw murmured, sounding sorrowful. "Do you think Smokestar would allow them into the Clan?"

Grasswave sighed. "Honestly, no." Leaving the she-cat's body there, he padded back over to the kits. After a short silence, he meowed, "We're just going to have to sneak them in."

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"Just push, Willowbreeze, you're doing great," Grasswave mewed. "All right, here comes the first kit." A dark gray kit slipped into the moss and Pebblepaw began to lick it. "A she-cat," he announced between licks.

Willowbreeze gave a screech and her body convulsed as the last kit, a gray tom, was born. He was much smaller than his sister. Grasswave noticed that the poppy seeds that he'd given Willowbreeze were starting to take effect. Her eyelids were drooping and she could barely keep her head up.

As Grasswave licked the little gray kit, he nodded to Pebblepaw. The gray apprentice turned and dragged a ball of moss over to Willowbreeze. Tucked inside were the three loner kits. He placed them, one by one, at Willowbreeze's belly. The gray queen now appeared to be asleep, and Pebblepaw suddenly felt guilty. Willowbreeze would believe that these kits were hers. He quickly shook the guilt away. He was saving three little lives, and, not only that, he was contributing to the Clan.

Grasswave placed Willowbreeze's real kits at their mother's belly and smiled down at the five bundles of fur. "Welcome to ThunderClan, little ones."

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ALLEGIANCES

THUNDERCLAN

Leader: **Smokestar-** dark gray tom with thick fur and blue eyes.

Deputy:** Brackenclaw-** golden-brown tabby tom with amber eyes.

Medicine Cat: **Grasswave- **old golden-brown tabby tom with amber eyes.

_Apprentice, Pebblefur_

Warriors: (toms and she-cats without kits)

**Dustclaw-** large pale gray tom with green eyes.

**Snowstorm-** large white tom with dark blue eyes.

_Apprentice, Rainpaw_

**Splashfur-** tortoiseshell and white she-cat with blue eyes.

_Apprentice, Poppypaw_

**Robinwing-** brown tabby she-cat with a white belly and chest.

**Mousefoot-** gray tabby tom with blue eyes.

**Graystream-** gray she-cat with dark blue eyes.

**Larchwing-** tabby she-cat with green eyes.

_Apprentice, Stormpaw_

**Oakfoot-** longlegged brown tabby tom with amber eyes.

_Apprentice, Fogpaw_

**Ripplewind-** dark gray tabby tom with blue eyes.

**Flamefeather-** dark ginger tom with green eyes.

**Applefrost-** tortoiseshell and white she-cat with green eyes.

**Berrywhisker-** cream-colored she-cat with pale green eyes.

Apprentices: (more than six moons old, in training to become warriors or medicine cat)

**Pebblefur-** gray tabby tom with blue eyes.

**Rainpaw-** tortoiseshell and white she-cat with blue eyes.

**Poppypaw-** tortoiseshell she-cat with green eyes.

**Stormpaw-** dark gray tom with blue eyes.

**Fogpaw-** dark gray tom with dark blue eyes.

Queens: (she-cats expecting or nursing kits)

**Flowerpetal-** ginger she-cat with green eyes; mother of Flamefeather's kits: Blazekit and Emberkit.

**Willowbreeze-** pale gray she-cat with green eyes; mother of Smokestar's kits: Shadekit, Nightkit, Streamkit, and Hawkkit.

**Mistysong-** silver tabby she-cat with blue eyes; mother of Mousefoot's kits: Minnowkit and Mallowkit.

**Quailfeather-** brown tabby she-cat with amber eyes; mother of Brackenclaw's unborn kits.

Kits: (less than six moons old)

**Blazekit-** dark ginger tom with green eyes.

**Emberkit-** dark ginger she-cat with blue eyes.

**Shadekit-** dark gray she-cat with blue eyes.

**Nightkit-** black she-cat with white paws.

**Streamkit-** gray tabby she-cat with blue eyes.

**Hawkkit- **large gray tom with ice-blue eyes.

**Minnowkit- **silver tabby she-cat with blue eyes.

**Mallowkit-** gray tabby tom with green eyes.

Elders: (former warriors and queens, now retired)

**Sharpclaw-** ginger tom with amber eyes.

**Wingfeather-** longhaired white-gray she-cat with blue eyes.

**Ferntail-** dark brown tabby tom with a short tail and green eyes.

SHADOWCLAN

Leader:** Brindlestar-** brown tabby she-cat with amber eyes.

Deputy:** Eaglefeather-** large pale gray tom with dark blue eyes.

_Apprentice, Cloudpaw_

Medicine Cat: **Clovergaze-** light brown she-cat with white paws and green eyes.

WINDCLAN

Leader:** Tawnystar-** tortoiseshell she-cat with amber eyes.

Deputy:**Sleetfur-** small white tom with blue eyes.

Medicine Cat:** Duskshadow-** dark tortoiseshell she-cat with yellow eyes.

_Apprentice, Seedpaw_

RIVERCLAN

Leader:** Swiftstar-** black and white tom with dark blue eyes.

Deputy:** Dawncloud-** tortoiseshell and white she-cat with green eyes.

Medicine Cat:** Rushingstream-** blue-gray she-cat with blue eyes.

CATS OUTSIDE THE CLANS

**Riddle-** black and silver tom with blue eyes.

**Claw-** large dark brown tabby tom with yellow eyes.

**Talon-** large black and white tom with amber eyes.

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**So, guys, there you have it. There may be more cats outside the Clans, but I don't know yet. I kind of make up the story and characters as I go along. And I know the prologue is really long, but every bit is important. I like it and I hope you guys do, too. Thanks for reading and have an awesome day!**


	2. Chapter One

**Here's chapter 1! The two POVs in this story are Streamkit and Nightkit. It alternates every other chapter. I hope you enjoy! **

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CHAPTER ONE

"_Applefrost! Berrywhisker!" The two she-cats_ lifted their chins proudly as the cats of ThunderClan called out their new warrior names.

Streamkit sat just outside the nursery, feeling jealousy mixed with relief wash over her: jealousy that the two she-cats were warriors, but relief that the ceremony hadn't been her apprentice ceremony, for she still hadn't made up her mind yet about what she wanted to be—warrior or medicine cat.

"Wow," her littermate, Shadekit, breathed into her ear. "I wonder if we'll be warriors one day."

"Of course we will," Streamkit mewed, desperate to cover up the fact that she was even considering becoming a medicine cat. "What else would we be?"

Shadekit shrugged. "I don't know. Killed?"

Streamkit glared at her sister. "Don't think like that! Come on; let's go find Hawkkit and Nightkit. Knowing them, they're probably off chasing badgers into the sunset."

"You act like we're complete and total mousebrains," a voice from behind them mewed. Streamkit turned to see her other littermates, Hawkkit and Nightkit. Hawkkit batted at Streamkit's tail. "Have a little faith in us!"

"You _are_ total mousebrains!" Shadekit purred good-naturedly. "Don't tell me you've forgotten the time when you got lost in the forest—"

Hawkkit glared at her. "You said you wouldn't bring that up again!"

"Sorry," Shadekit laughed. "Come on; let's go play." She turned and began to bound away, only to crash into the medicine cat, Grasswave.

Shadekit backed up, her eyes wide. "S-sorry, Grasswave!"

The golden-brown tom smiled. "Quite all right, young one. Be careful next time, all right?" He sidestepped the four kits and headed to the elders' den.

"Look, there's a moss ball!" Nightkit dashed over to the medicine cat den, snatching up a ball of dry moss and tossing it to Hawkkit. The gray tom hooked it with his claws and suggested, "Let's make teams! Streamkit and I will be on a team, and Shadekit and Nightkit will be on a team."

"Okay!" Shadekit bounded across the clearing towards Nightkit.

Before the first throw was made, Minnowkit and Mallowkit padded up to the four kits. The two kits were about a moon younger than them, but Streamkit and Mallowkit had been close friends for as long as she could remember.

"Are you playing catch-and-throw?" Minnowkit asked, her blue eyes twinkling with curiosity.

"Yes," Streamkit replied, "want to play?"

"Of course!" Mallowkit exclaimed, racing over to Streamkit. "Are you in teams?"

"What does it look like?" Hawkkit mewed irritably. He'd never liked neither Minnowkit nor Mallowkit, although Streamkit didn't quite know why.

Minnowkit scurried over to Nightkit's team, and the game began by Hawkkit tossing the moss ball into the air and whacking it with a forepaw. Shadekit lunged to the left and caught it in her mouth. She hurled it back and this time, Streamkit caught it between her forepaws.

"Be careful, kits." Their mother, Willowbreeze, had settled down in front of the nursery to watch. "We will."

Streamkit hadn't noticed Grasswave pad by until the moss ball hit him, bouncing off his back and falling to the ground at his hind paws.

"Oh!" Streamkit gasped. "I-I'm sorry, Grasswave!"

The golden-brown tom stalked over to Streamkit and leaned down into her face. She could feel his sour breath on her forehead.

"You'd better be sorry, kit, or I'll _make_ you sorry," Grasswave snarled. Streamkit's tail fluffed out and ears flattened in fear.

Hawkkit shoved his way in front of Grasswave. "Leave her alone!" he growled, bristling.

Scowling, Grasswave sat up and turned, stalking away. His apprentice, Pebblefur, who had seen the whole thing, scurried over to him. Grasswave hissed and lashed his tail at him before disappearing into his den.

Willowbreeze's scent filled Streamkit's senses, comforting her and stopping her shivering. Her mother wound herself around Streamkit's small body and murmured, "Are you all right?"

Streamkit nodded and gazed up at her mother with wide eyes. "Why does he hate me? He was so nice so Shadekit when she ran into him."

"He's just getting old, and cranky, too," Willowbreeze assured her. "He doesn't hate you."

Still, Streamkit wasn't so sure.

Mallowkit padded over to Streamkit, his green eyes wide. "What was _that_ about?"

Streamkit shrugged, and Mallowkit touched his friend's shoulder with his tail-tip. "Don't worry; he's just an old badger. Come on; let's keep playing catch-and-throw."

Streamkit sighed. "To be honest, I don't feel up to playing anymore."

"That's okay. We can just lay here in the shade and watch." Mallowkit trotted over to the oak tree and settled down in the shade it provided.

"You can go ahead and play," Streamkit told Nightkit. "We don't really feel like playing anymore."

Nightkit shrugged. "Okay." She bounded over to Hawkkit's side, and the kits continued playing.

Streamkit rested her chin on her paws; how was she supposed to be a medicine cat? Grasswave already had an apprentice! So long as both cats were alive, there was no chance of her becoming a medicine cat. Not that she wanted either of them to die—Streamkit shook her head. Of course that's not what she wanted. So what _did_ she want, then? Perhaps she needed to talk it over with Pebblefur. But for now, she needed to continue pretending that she would be a warrior with her littermates; they would be heartbroken if they discovered she wouldn't be training with them. Streamkit could already imagine the snarl on Hawkkit's face. "You want to be a _medicine cat?_ What a cowardly position!"

"Streamkit?"

Mallowkit waved a forepaw in front of his friend's face. Streamkit's thoughts disappeared and she focused on Mallowkit. "Oh, sorry. I was just thinking…about Sagekit."

Mallowkit frowned. "Why?"

"I don't know; I was just…" Streamkit trailed off. Sagekit was one of her littermates that had died when he was only a few days old. She didn't remember him, but Willowbreeze said he looked exactly like his mother—solid gray coat, sleek pelt, small ears, long whiskers. "…thinking. Wondering what he would be like if he was still alive."

"Oh." Mallowkit gazed around the clearing, and Streamkit followed suit. It was past sunhigh; a hunting patrol was just returning, consisting of two senior warriors, Splashfur and Snowstorm, and their apprentices Rainpaw and Poppypaw. Their jaws were flooding with prey; it was almost the end of green-leaf, and prey would soon be scarcer and scarcer, Streamkit knew. Well, she didn't _really_ know. She had only seen green-leaf, having been born at the beginning of it and living for three moons.

Brackenclaw, the ThunderClan deputy, padded over to Mousefoot. "Would you take the evening patrol today?"

Mousefoot nodded, looking pleased to be leading a patrol.

"Take Graystream, Larchwing, and Stormpaw."

Streamkit wondered what it must be like to patrol the territory at night. How did they know where they were going?

She bristled when Grasswave trudged out of the den, Pebblefur on his heels. "But Grasswave—you already gave Ferntail some ragwort leaves."

Grasswave hissed. "Quit telling me what to do! _I'm_ the medicine cat here, and _you're_ just a mousebrained apprentice! Now leave me alone and let me take care of my Clan!" He stormed into the elders' den, fur standing on end.

Pebblefur narrowed his eyes, shook his head, and turned back into the medicine den.

Suddenly a yowl sounded, and Streamkit glanced over at the camp entrance. Robinwing, a senior warrior, was thrusting her way out of the thorn tunnel, followed by Flamefeather, Oakfoot, and his apprentice Fogpaw.

Smokestar appeared from his den in a heartbeat. "Robinwing, what's going on?"

Robinwing caught her breath and announced, "Rogues have been scented in our territory!"

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**Sorry it was so short; the next chapter will definitely be longer! Yeah, Grasswave is kind of a jerk, but he's only rude to certain cats. Keep in mind that he's also very old and has been through a lot. Hope you enjoyed and have a great day! :)**


	3. Chapter Two

**Well, I still don't have any reviews. Don't get me wrong, I'm not a review whore. Reviews are just greatly appreciated! If you review me before the next chapter is up, I'll reply in the ending notes in the next chapter! So here's chapter two, in Nightkit's POV. Enjoy!**

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CHAPTER TWO

_Nightkit bristled and glanced at Smokestar,_ watching his reaction. He narrowed his eyes but remained icily calm.

Brackenclaw stepped up to stand beside him. "Where?"

"It was by the WindClan border, up near the Moonpool," Robinwing replied. "But that's not it. The rogue scent—we've definitely smelled it before."

"Could it be those rogues that were scented about three moons back?" Brackenclaw suggested.

Robinwing hesitated, and then nodded, her eyes wide. "That's it! The rogue scent that appeared once by that dead loner, but we never caught a glimpse of the mangepelts…that's what it was!"

"Those rogues caused the Clans great trouble many seasons ago," Ferntail, an elder, rasped. The brown tom was the oldest cat in ThunderClan, and perhaps the craziest, but he always told the best stories.

Smokestar padded over to the elders' den, where the three old cats sat just outside. "What happened? How did they cause trouble?"

"Oh, yes, I vaguely remember these rogues," another elder, Wingfeather, mewed thoughtfully. "I was just barely an apprentice when they showed up."

Sharpclaw, the third elder, looked confused, and Wingfeather touched his shoulder with her tail-tip. "You must've been a kit at the time."

"They were real mean fellows," Ferntail growled, "killing cats left and right. They weren't really bothering ThunderClan as much as they bothered ShadowClan and RiverClan."

"And how did they get rid of them?" Smokestar asked. Ferntail shrugged. "Like I said, it was mostly ShadowClan and RiverClan being affected. I thought they'd been driven out, but many cats died. They stole prey during leaf-bare, leaving warriors too weak to fight them. And I heard once during a Gathering that one night, they came and snatched all the kits in ShadowClan."

Nightkit swallowed nervously, pressing her pelt against Minnowkit's.

"But what do they want with the Clans?" Brackenclaw meowed, sounding frustrated and puzzled.

"We weren't entirely sure," Wingfeather admitted, "but it must've had something to do with the Clans killing some of the rogues many, many seasons ago. I remember during one of the battles in which ThunderClan came to ShadowClan's aid, the rogues were yowlin' out, 'This is our revenge! See how it feels!' The force in their swipes and slashes were driven by deep-rooted anger, Smokestar, I can tell you that much."

Nightkit shivered at the phrase "deep-rooted anger". The Clans must've really done something horrible to the rogues.

Smokestar nodded to the elders. "Thank you. You've been a great help." He spun back around and galloped into the center of the clearing. "I want a patrol to secure the area that the rogues were scented. Brackenclaw, take Robinwing and Dustclaw. But be careful, just in case the rogues are around."

The three cats nodded and dashed up the thorn tunnel. Nightkit watched as they disappeared over the edge of the stone wall.

"That's scary," Minnowkit murmured. "If only _we_ were warriors—we'd give those rogues some wounds to think about!"

Nightkit nodded, but was secretly glad that they weren't warriors at that time. Those rogues sounded awfully powerful and ruthless, willing to rip apart any cat in their way.

"Let's go ask Ferntail and Wingfeather to tell us a story about them!" Minnowkit suddenly chirped, leaping to her paws.

"Oh, no, you don't." Minnowkit's mother, Mistysong, placed a forepaw in front of her daughter. "It's getting late, and I don't want you having any nightmares."

"I won't, Mother!" Minnowkit squirmed away. "Nightmares are for _kits!"_

"If you're not a kit, then what are you?" Mistysong acted confused.

Minnowkit hesitated, and then exclaimed, "The future of ThunderClan!"

Mistysong laughed. "That's right. But you're not the _present_, and _now_ for the present, you'll be going off to sleep." She lifted her daughter up by the scruff and carried her towards the nursery. Nightkit could hear Minnowkit protested, "But I'm not tired!" until the two silver cats disappeared into the brambles.

Suddenly Nightkit felt a shadow fall over her. She turned and glanced up to see Smokestar standing over her. She curled her tail in delight. "Father!"

"I think it's almost time someone else to go to sleep," Smokestar mewed, amber eyes twinkling in the orange dusk light.

"_I_ think we should wait and watch the sunset." Nightkit sat between her father's huge, muscular forepaws. Smokestar rasped his tongue over her ear. "I think that's a great idea."

As the sun sank into the trees, turning the clouds purple, and the sky orange and pink, Nightkit suddenly remembered something she'd been meaning to ask for a long time. "Father…will we ever see Sagekit again?"

Smokestar stiffened as his dead son's name. Sagekit had been Nightkit's brother, but had died when he was only a few days old. He sighed. "I hope so, Nightkit. I hope so."

The stars of Silverpelt were just beginning to appear in the indigo sky. "Do you think he's up there, in Silverpelt?" Nightkit wondered aloud.

Smokestar nodded. "I do. I know he's up there, watching us, and helping your mother and me keep track of you four."

"Dad!"

Smokestar suddenly shifted, and Nightkit darted out from between his paws. Hawkkit was clinging to his back and Shadekit laying on his tail-tip.

"Oh, no! An ambush!" Smokestar twisted, shaking Hawkkit off, and collapsed to the ground on his back. "My own kits are betraying me!"

"I'll _never_ betray you, Father!" Shadekit squeaked, releasing his tail-tip from between her forepaws.

Grinning, Nightkit climbed onto his belly and sat down. "Now you can't get up!"

"I'm trapped!" Smokestar whimpered. "Please, O Mighty Nightkit, spare me my life!"

Nightkit pressed her paw to his chest. "Not until you fetch me the warmest, juiciest mouse in the whole forest!"

"That's enough playing for tonight, kits." Willowbreeze padded up to them. "I don't want you to keep me up all night with energy."

"Awww!" Shadekit complained. Nightkit leapt off Smokestar's belly, frowning.

"Let's see…one…two…three…" Willowbreeze counted her kits, but then stopped. "Where's Streamkit?"

"I think she's in the nursery with Minnowkit and Mallowkit," Shadekit mewed.

"Well, the nursery is where we're headed," Willowbreeze meowed. "Say goodnight to Smokestar."

"Goodnight!" the three kits cried in unison.

He waved his tail. "Sweet dreams, my little warriors." He gave his mate a lick on the cheek. "Goodnight, my love."

Willowbreeze purred. "Goodnight." She swept her tail around her kits, gathering them toward the nursery.

Once inside, Nightkit glanced around. Quailfeather, a heavily pregnant queen, was curled into a tight ball, asleep in her nest in the corner of the nursery. Flowerpetal, Flamefeather's mate, wasn't in her nest, but Blazekit and Emberkit were fast asleep against each other. Mistysong was washing herself, Minnowkit and Mallowkit getting comfortable at the crook of her belly. However, Streamkit was nowhere to be found.

"Mistysong, have you seem Streamkit?" Willowbreeze asked, a bit of panic staining her usually calm voice.

"Not since I brought Minnowkit and Mallowkit to the nursery," the silver queen replied. "Check the elders' den; Minnowkit mentioned that she was going there for a story."

"Thank you." Willowbreeze dipped her head. "She doesn't usually go off like this. She's so well-behaved." She glanced down at her three kits. "You three stay here while I look for her, understand?"

"Yes, Mother." The kits nodded, but Nightkit could see a gleam of mischief in Hawkkit's eyes.

The moment Willowbreeze stepped out of the nursery, Hawkkit turned to his sisters. "Let's go look for her!"

Nightkit leapt to her paws eagerly, but Shadekit frowned. "But what if we get caught?"

"Streamkit could be anywhere!" Hawkkit hissed. "What if she's in danger somewhere? Wouldn't you want to help her? She's our sister! Now, come on before anyone sees us!"

The three kits darted into the clearing and pressed themselves against the stone wall. Hawkkit motioned to the apprentices' den with his muzzle. "Shadekit, you check in there. Nightkit, you check in the medicine den. I'll check in Smokestar's den. Now everyone split up, and meet back here in just a few heartbeats, with or without Streamkit."

The littermates split, Nightkit bolting towards Grasswave's den. She was a bit uneasy to go near him after what had happened earlier that day.

She stuck her head into the entrance, catching a trace of Streamkit's scent, and listened when she heard voices.

"I don't know, Streamkit." That was Pebblefur's voice. Was Streamkit ill? Nightkit listened harder. "Some cats are meant to be medicine cats. StarClan chooses them specially at the right time. Your destiny just may not lie here, in the medicine den."

"But…I don't want to be a warrior."

Nightkit froze; that was Streamkit's voice. And why in the name of StarClan would she say _that?_ Of course she wanted to be a warrior! Nightkit suddenly felt guilty. What if she and Hawkkit had been forcing her to be a warrior, when all she really wanted was to be a medicine cat? What kind of sister was she?

"We'll just have to see," Pebblefur mewed. "I'm sorry, Streamkit. Only time will tell us your destiny. Now, run along. I'll bet your mother is looking for you."

Nightkit raced into the den, only to crash into Streamkit. "Oh! Sorry, Nightkit."

"It's okay. Mother is looking for you."

"Oh. Did you hear anything just now?" Streamkit both looked and sounded worried. "What we were saying in there?"

Nightkit hesitated, looking at Streamkit's anxiety-filled blue eyes, the way she was kneading at the ground with her paws, the way her tail-tip twitched nervously. She shook her head. "No. Are you all right? Did you come to get herbs?"

Streamkit nodded and stared at her paws. "Yeah, I, uh…I had a bellyache. But it's better now. Pebblefur gave me some juniper berries."

_Juniper berries?_ Nightkit was surprised. _She can think of an herb that quick? Or does she really know that juniper berries cure bellyaches? _She and her sister padded back over to the spot where Hawkkit and Shadekit were waiting. Hawkkit cheered and leapt into the air. "You found her! And not a moment too soon; Mother is coming back to the nursery."

Willowbreeze gathered her kits with her tail and led them into the nursery. "Goodnight, kits. I love you."

Nightkit smiled, but inside she felt rotten. Her sister didn't feel safe talking with her about being a medicine cat. Hawkkit and Nightkit were always so excited to train together and have mock fights, and perhaps Streamkit felt like her siblings wouldn't accept her if she was to train as a medicine cat. _But she knew that juniper berries were for bellyaches. All I know is that herbs taste yucky._

Nightkit glanced over at Streamkit, who was just curling up by Willowbreeze's paws. _Maybe she _is_ meant to be a medicine cat, after all._

xxx

**Yay, there's chapter 2! It seemed kind of pointless, I know, but Streamkit's decision will be very important in the future. And who are these rogues, anyway? What do they want with the Clans? Hope you enjoyed (those of you that actually read this story…) and have an awesome day! :)**


	4. Chapter Three

**Hello, and welcome to chapter 3! First of all, yes, I changed Mintkit to Mallowkit. I just felt that there were too many she-cats, so I changed her to a tom named Mallowkit. Sorry if it confused you!**

**Second, I want to give a shout-out to Nyachu-chan for following my story. Thank you so much; it's greatly appreciated!**

**Third, thank you, icefire0218 for reading and reviewing! It means a lot. I love reviews. :) And also, thanks for the suggestion! I never really thought of doing that. However, I already have a plan for Streamkit's destiny.**

**Now, on with the story, in Streamkit's POV!**

xxx

CHAPTER THREE

"_These cats," a voice snarled_ _in_ the darkness, "are ruining our lives. We must bring them down at all costs, and their kits, too!"

Yowls and shrieks of determination and fury filled the air.

"Streamkit!"

She jolted awake, the screeches of the cats still buzzing in her ears, to see Shadekit leaning over in her face. "Are you okay? You were whimpering in your sleep!"

Streamkit sat up and gazed around the nursery. It was already past dawn. "Yes, I'm fine. Thank you for waking me. I was having a…a nightmare, I guess." She twitched her ears, trying to rid them of the echoing from her dream.

Blazekit, Emberkit, and Flowerpetal were all missing from their nests, whereas the other queens and kits were still inside.

"Where are Blazekit and Emberkit?" Streamkit wondered aloud.

"Today is their apprentice ceremony," Minnowkit chimed in from her nest as she groomed a piece of moss from her silver pelt.

"Oh, wow!" Streamkit breathed. "That means we'll be the oldest kits in the nursery." _And that means I only have 2 moons left before _my_ apprentice ceremony!_

"Isn't that cool?" Nightkit squeaked, twisting in the air. "Their ceremony is at sunhigh. I wonder who their mentors will be?"

Shadekit shrugged. "Let's go eat before the ceremony."

The six kits bundled out of the nursery and over to the fresh-kill pile. Streamkit could see Flowerpetal grooming her two kits in the shade of the oak tree; Blazekit looked furious as his mother washed his ears, but Emberkit's flame-colored pelt gleamed.

Streamkit, Hawkkit, and Shadekit shared a rabbit, which was a bit scrawnier than she was used to. The air was getting very cool, and dead leaves were falling into the stone hollow with every gust of chilly wind. Streamkit enjoyed the cool weather, but knew that it meant less prey.

Once the kits finished eating, Smokestar leapt onto the Highledge. "Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey meet beneath the Highledge for a Clan meeting!"

Blazekit and Emberkit bounded over to the front of the crowd. Cats of all ages gathered beneath the Highledge. The elders joined the crowd at the right, and warriors slunk out of their den sleepily. Quailfeather lay just outside the nursery between Mistysong and Willowbreeze, who had their eyes on their kits. Flowerpetal sat gazing at her kits fondly.

Streamkit and Mallowkit found a spot near the nursery so they could see better, whereas her other littermates and Minnowkit joined the apprentices.

"Today is a very important day, for two kits have reached their sixth moon and are ready to take on apprenticeship," Smokestar announced. "Blazekit, Emberkit, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and defend your Clan, even at the cost of your lives?"

"I do!" the dark ginger cats replied in unison. The Clan chuckled.

"Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your new apprentice names." Smokestar glanced down at the tom. "Blazekit, from this day until you earn your warrior name, you will be known as Blazepaw." He gazed over the crowd of ThunderClan cats. "Graystream, you are ready for another apprentice. Please pass all of your knowledge and skills onto this apprentice, and place his paws on the path to warrior hood."

The slender gray she-cat padded up to Blazepaw, touched noses with him, and led him back to sit with the apprentices.

"Emberkit, from this day until you earn your warrior name, you will be known as Emberpaw. Mousefoot, you, too, are ready for your next apprentice. Please pass on your wisdom and courage to this apprentice, and place her paws on the path to warrior hood." Smokestar watched proudly as Emberpaw and Mousefoot touched noses.

"Blazepaw! Emberpaw! Blazepaw! Emberpaw!" the Clan cheered, their voices echoing off the walls of the stone hollow. Streamkit joined in loudly; she had never really gotten to know the cats, but she wanted to encourage them nonetheless.

Once the ceremony was over, Rainpaw and Poppypaw, two of the older apprentices, bounded over to greet them. Streamkit watched as cats congratulated them. She wondered if cats would do the same for her, regardless of whether she was a warrior apprentice or a medicine cat apprentice.

"We're now officially the oldest kits in the nursery!" Hawkkit exclaimed excitedly. "We get to boss the other kits around now."

"Hey! I won't be bossed around by some mangy fuzzball!" Minnowkit batted at Hawkkit's tail playfully.

Streamkit glanced over at the medicine cat's den. Grasswave hadn't come to watch the ceremony, but Pebblefur was making his way back into the den.

"Would you excuse me?" Streamkit asked Mallowkit, rising to her paws. "I've got a bit of a bellyache, so I'm going to go ask Pebblefur for something."

Mallowkit nodded. "Would you like me to go with you?"

"No, that's all right." Streamkit bounded across the clearing and into the den. "Pebblefur?"

"Hey, Streamkit," the gray tom greeted, glancing up from his herbs. "I was just trying to make another hollow in the ground for these dried oak leaves I found."

"Can I help?" Streamkit asked shyly. He nodded. "Any help is welcome. Look at this huge pile I found just in the camp!" He motioned to a large heap of dried leaves.

Streamkit sniffed at them. "These are herbs? What do they do?"

Pebblefur began to dig into the earth. "They're used for preventing infection."

"Wow." Streamkit suddenly scented something strong. "What's _that?"_

"That's probably tansy you smell." Pebblefur flicked his tail to a pile of yellow flowers. "It's really useful for coughs, and they smell really strong, so they're easy to…" His voice trailed off and he stared at Streamkit.

"What?" Streamkit glanced down at her chest. "Is there something on me?"

Pebblefur was silent a moment, his eyes wide, but then relaxed a moment later. "S-sorry, I was just…remembering something I had to do."

Streamkit nodded, but she could tell he was lying. Something had really spooked him. She began lifting the dried oak leaves with her forepaws and placing them into the small hollow he had dug in the ground.

Once they'd finished, Pebblefur twitched his whiskers. "Thanks for helping, Streamkit. You'd definitely make a great apprentice." He sounded slightly sorrowful, as though he really wished he could mentor her.

_Does Pebblefur wish Grasswave was dead?_ Streamkit wondered as she made her way out of the medicine den. _Grasswave doesn't really do much anymore, anyways. Whenever a cat has a bellyache or a scratch, they go to Pebblefur. He's more of a medicine cat than Grasswave!_

Streamkit watched as Graystream and Mousefoot led their new apprentices out of the camp. _Probably for a tour of the territory,_ she thought.

Suddenly, Dustclaw burst into the camp, followed by Larchwing, Berrywhisker, and Stormpaw. "Smokestar!" he called.

The dark gray leader appeared from his den. "Dustclaw, what's going on?"

"We caught another trace of the rogues!" Dustclaw reported.

"Where?" Smokestar demanded.

Dustclaw caught his breath. "By the WindClan border again. But there's something else—WindClan was on our territory!"

xxx

**Hey! Sorry it was so short again. Yay, more rogue drama and now some WindClan drama as well! Hope you enjoyed and have an awesome day!**


	5. Chapter Four

**Here's the next chapter already! I know I've been updating like crazy. I haven't even eaten lunch and it's 3:30 PM here! Hope you enjoy chapter 4 in Nightkit's POV! :)**

xxx

CHAPTER FOUR

"_WindClan?" Smokestar hissed. "What were they_ doing on our territory?"

"The rogue scent was mostly on the far side of the stream, but WindClan's scent was more towards the lake. There was a tuft of rabbit fur in the sand, which leads me to believe that they were hunting." Dustclaw shook his head and sank his claws into the ground. "I wish I'd seen a patrol; I would've really taught them a lesson about staying on their side of the stream!"

"Now, hang on a minute." Brackenclaw stepped up beside Smokestar. "You mentioned that the rogue scent was on the far side of the stream. Did it seem stronger on WindClan's side?"

Larchwing nodded. "When the wind blew from their side, we picked up a really strong rogue scent."

Brackenclaw furrowed his eyebrows and sat down, curling his tail over his paws. "And when we first scented the rogues about a moon ago, Ferntail made it sound like all four Clans were fearful of them."

Ferntail nodded. "They all were. When ShadowClan and RiverClan described the stories at the Gatherings, that scared the fur off our pelts!"

"I see where you're going with this, Brackenclaw," Smokestar meowed. "Perhaps WindClan is fearful of the rogues. Perhaps they're trying to stay away from the scent, and that's why they were hunting on our side."

"That doesn't give them any excuse to be on our side of the border!" Flamefeather hissed, lashing his tail.

"What are we going to do about it?" Oakfoot demanded.

Chatter spread over the Clan, most cats looking furious and bristling their fur.

Smokestar thought a moment, and then lifted his tail to silence his Clan. "All I'm going to do for now is have extra patrols along the stream. If and when a WindClan patrol shows up, question whether or not they were on our side. If they deny it, give them a threat. Do _not _attack, unless they attack first."

"And what if we run into the rogues?" Dustclaw asked the leader. Smokestar stiffened and replied, "Only senior warriors will patrol that area." He turned to Dustclaw. "Take another patrol to secure both areas of the border."

Dustclaw summoned Snowstorm, Splashfur, and Robinwing from the crowd, and they disappeared into the thorn tunnel.

"Those mangy fleabags!" Hawkkit hissed. "If I were a warrior, I would march right into their camp and demand—"

"You're not thinking like a warrior," Nightkit mewed pointedly. "What do you think would happen if a ThunderClan warrior waltzed right into the WindClan camp?"

Hawkkit sighed. "I guess you're right. If only we could go patrol the border!"

"We wouldn't want to run into any rogues." Shadekit's eyes widened. "Remember what Wingfeather and Ferntail said? They killed many, many cats!"

"Yeah, yeah." Hawkkit turned and padded over to the shade. "I'm going to take a nap."

"Hawkkit, taking a nap?" Shadekit giggled. "You must be really tired!"

Hawkkit shrugged. "I've got a bit of a bellyache."

"Why don't you go see Pebblefur?" Nightkit suggested. Hawkkit nodded and padded towards the medicine den.

"I can't believe those spineless WindClanners think that they can just come over to our side and take our prey!" Nightkit heard Flamefeather hissing to Ripplewind.

"I can't say I blame them for being afraid of the rogues," Ripplewind mewed, "but hunting on our side of the border? Prey is getting scarce enough already!"

Nightkit shivered; how big of a threat was WindClan compared to the rogues? All WindClan did was hunt on their territory. They didn't hurt or kill any cat. But these rogues…something about the way the elders described them made her fur stand on end.

She glanced up to see Smokestar padding over to her. Shadekit leapt to her paws. "Father!"

"Hi, kits," he greeted. Nightkit didn't respond, whereas Shadekit crawled onto his back, laughing and nipping his ears.

"Nightkit, is something wrong?" Smokestar asked, bending over and sniffing his daughter. She shook her head. "I was just thinking about the rogues."

Smokestar rasped his tongue between her ears. "Don't worry about them. You're still a kit, and you have a whole Clan of warriors and apprentices that are protecting you."

"I'm not worried about _my_ safety," Nightkit meowed. "I'm worried about the safety of the Clans! You heard Ferntail! He said that the rogues killed many, many cats. Why aren't we off trying to get rid of the rogues?"

Smokestar sighed. "Like I said, don't worry about the rogues. Focus on having fun, okay? That's what kits are supposed to do."

"Okay," Nightkit agreed half-heartedly as he padded away.

"Come on, Nightkit." Shadekit nudged her with her nose. "Lighten up. You heard what he said. We don't have to worry about those rogues."

Suddenly, someone bowled into Nightkit. She gasped and fell onto her belly. "Hawkkit! Get off me!"

Hawkkit's eyes were wide and his fur on end. He said nothing as he raced into the nursery.

Nightkit furrowed her eyebrows. "What's wrong with him?"

"He looked petrified," Shadekit observed. "I wonder if Grasswave was mean to him like he was to Streamkit."

"Maybe." Nightkit shrugged. Whatever it was, it couldn't be too important.

That night, when Nightkit and her siblings headed into the nursery, Hawkkit was already in their nest, asleep. He was twitching, his ears flicking and legs jerking. Willowbreeze bounded over to him and nudged him with her nose. "Hawkkit. Wake up, love."

He jolted awake, panting, his icy blue eyes huge.

"Are you okay?" Streamkit asked. "Were you having a nightmare?"

He stared at Streamkit, then looked at Nightkit, and tucked his nose under his paws. "I'm fine."

Nightkit and Streamkit exchanged glances. What was going on with him? What had happened in the medicine den that made him act so strange?

xxx

Suddenly, Nightkit was lying on the forest floor. It was completely dark, but she could just barely see the moon through the claws of branches and leaves. She realized with a start that she could hardly move. A strong, herby scent filled her nose, and she coughed. Where was she? Why was everything so strange?

Above the floral scent, Nightkit picked up on a faint scent, one that made her belly churn—blood. Was she bleeding? She struggled to get to her paws, but she couldn't. She was too weak.

"I want these cats dead! Dead! You hear me?"

Yowls and shrieks filled the air, as well as the rotten stench of crowfood.

Nightkit jolted awake. It was still nighttime, and her mother and siblings were asleep. She could just faintly hear Hawkkit mumbling in his sleep. Nightkit turned and prodded him with a forepaw, trying to wake him up. He was twitching again, thrashing about in his sleep. "Hawkkit. Wake up."

He didn't wake, but he stopped thrashing and mumbling.

Nightkit tried to fall back asleep, but she just kept hearing the yowls of those cats and the scent of the herbs and blood kept filling her nose. She crept out of the nursery and into the clearing. All was silent, except for the cold wind that rustled the leaves on the trees. She could see Applefrost sitting at the camp entrance, keeping guard.

Suddenly, Nightkit heard voices. Angry, hushed voices, coming from the medicine cat's den. She stalked over to it and crouched down near the entrance, straining her ears.

"How could you do that?" Pebblefur demanded. "They weren't supposed to know!"

"I can do whatever I please!" Grasswave hissed. "They're going to find out anyway."

"You're crazy, Grasswave. Insane. You're going insane, that's what's happening!"

Grasswave laughed. "You don't hear the voices at night, Pebblefur. You don't hear the cats yowling and killing. _I_ hear them! It would be a wonder if I _didn't_ go insane!"

"I hear them, too!" Pebblefur growled. "You think, ever since that day, I've been completely fine?"

"That day was a day that should have never happened, no matter what any cat says! Yes, they're a contribution to the Clan, but why would we keep dreaming these dreams and hearing these voices if they were meant to be here in ThunderClan?" Grasswave broke off, and Nightkit could hear sobs coming from the old tom.

"So what are we supposed to do?" Pebblefur's voice was low. "Toss them back into the forest? They're all incredibly intelligent and strong. They're going to benefit the Clan someday. I just can't believe you told him, and especially like that! Did you see the look on his little face when you hissed at him that he isn't really—"

Nightkit gasped; a twig under her hind paw had snapped, startling the medicine cat apprentice. She dove forward, pressing herself against the stone wall and crouching down. She thanked StarClan that she had a black pelt, but her white paws just might be spotted. She buried them in the leaves.

Pebblefur appeared from the entrance, glancing around. Nightkit held her breath. A few heartbeats later he ducked back into the den.

Nightkit sighed in relief and crept back across the clearing into the nursery. Hawkkit was at it again, twitching and moaning, his flank rising and falling rapidly. Nightkit shook her head and curled into a ball, reflecting on what Grasswave and Pebblefur had said. What in the name of StarClan were they talking about? Did this have anything to do with Hawkkit's strange behavior?

xxx

**Oh shiz. Here's where the real plot begins, my friends! Well, it's still a pretty short chapter. I guess I'm just not the type of person that writes long chapters. Haha, get it—type? HAHAHA anyways. I hope you enjoyed this chapter, however confused you may be about it. Yes, it was strange, but it's supposed to be that way! Have a great day!**


	6. Chapter Five

**Hey, I'm back! I want to give a shout-out to patches9812 for following this fanfic. Thanks so much! I hope you like it!**

xxx

CHAPTER FIVE

_Streamkit awoke to the scent of_ herbs filling her nose. She opened her eyes and realized she wasn't between her mother's paws like she had been when she'd fallen asleep. She'd been replaced by Hawkkit, who was still asleep but his flanks were rising and falling quickly and shallowly. Willowbreeze was rasping her tongue over her son, worry tainting her green eyes. Pebblefur was padding into the nursery, his mouth full of herbs.

"Mother, is something wrong with Hawkkit?" Streamkit asked, sitting up.

Willowbreeze shushed her and replied in a whisper, "He got a fever overnight. Pebblefur is going to check him over and see if there's any infection."

Pebblefur placed the herbs down and began to sniff Hawkkit. Streamkit watched with interest as he prodded the limbs of the little tom, checking them for any fractures or sprains. He pressed his nose to one of Hawkkit's paw pads and announced, "Well, there are no injuries on him, but he _is_ running a fever. I'll give him some feverfew and see if he responds to it."

"Hawkkit, can you wake up?" Willowbreeze nudged him with her muzzle. He jolted awake, panting, and stared at Pebblefur with huge eyes.

"Eat these herbs," Pebblefur mewed gently, handing him a couple of feverfew leaves. "They'll make you feel better."

Hawkkit didn't even blink.

Pebblefur rose to his paws. "I'll come and check on him later to see how he's doing."

"Thank you, Pebblefur," Willowbreeze mewed as he padded out of the nursery.

Streamkit poked at Nightkit, who was also still sleeping. "Wake up, Nightkit."

Nightkit opened her eyes slowly. "What's going on?"

"Hawkkit is sick," Streamkit told her. "Want to go eat?"

Her sister shook her head. "I'm too tired." She closed her eyes and rested her chin on her paws.

Streamkit sniffed her. "You're not sick too, are you?"

"No." Nightkit wrapped her tail around her body. "Sorry, Streamkit. I couldn't sleep last night, is all."

"Okay," Streamkit mewed disappointedly. She turned and padded out into the clearing. The sun was completely covered up by gray clouds, and the scent of rain hung heavily in the air. She headed over to the fresh-kill pile and selected a tiny shrew, probably too small for a warrior but the perfect size for one kit. After eating, she headed back into the nursery.

Hawkkit was gone, as was Willowbreeze, but the other kits were awake and pouncing on leaves.

"Hey, Streamkit!" Shadekit mewed. "Look at this huge leave!" She lifted an oak leaf the size of her head into her jaws, her neck raised to keep it off the ground.

"Oh, wow!" Streamkit breathed. "It's huge. Say, where's Hawkkit? Isn't he sick?"

Shadekit shrugged. "He said he was feeling better."

"I didn't see him in the clearing," Streamkit mewed, puzzled.

As if on cue, Hawkkit entered the nursery, looking tired and distant. He was carrying a small mouse in his jaws.

"Hey, Hawkkit," Streamkit greeted, "are you feeling better?"

Hawkkit nodded and placed the mouse on the ground. "Anyone hungry? This mouse looks amazing."

"I'm hungry!" Shadekit leapt to her paws and sniffed at the mouse. "It smells a bit strange, don't you think?"

Hawkkit shrugged. "A warrior wouldn't put it on the fresh-kill pile if it wasn't safe to eat."

"That's true." Shadekit took a bite, and Minnowkit padded up beside her. "Can I share that with you? I'm starved."

As the two kits ate, Streamkit couldn't help but stare at Hawkkit. He was shivering, so clearly he didn't feel better, but his gaze was stone-cold as he watched the two she-cats devour the mouse. What was going on with him? He'd been acting strange ever since he went to the medicine den yesterday for his bellyache.

What had happened in the medicine den?

Streamkit turned and exited the nursery, heading for the medicine den. She wanted to see for herself. Upon entering, she noticed Pebblefur sitting in his nest, staring blankly at the den wall.

"Pebblefur?" she called out tentatively.

He jumped, but relaxed when he saw her. "Oh, Streamkit, Would you mind helping me sort these herbs? I've got to go check on the elders for a bit."

He led her over to a pile of mixed herbs. "Grasswave accidentally trampled through these. I already picked out the ruined ones, but I need you to separate them. It's a mixture of fennel and borage leaves. The fennel leaves are thin and spiky, whereas the borage leaves are large and hairy."

Streamkit beamed; Pebblefur was trusting her with his herbs! She couldn't let him down—not a single herb could be out of place. She suddenly remembered the real reason she came to see him. "Pebblefur, is something going on with Hawkkit?"

Pebblefur hesitated. "What do you mean? He's just got…a bit of a fever."

"No, I mean…" Streamkit paused, thinking of the words to say. "Ever since yesterday, when he came here about a bellyache, he has been acting strange."

"He's just got a chill or something. Nothing to be worried about." Pebblefur grabbed a mouthful of herbs so he could speak no more, and scurried out of the den.

Puzzled, Streamkit began to sort the leaves. Hairy leaves, borage, went into a pile to the left, and thin spiky leaves, fennel, went to the right.

"Hey, Streamkit."

She jumped and glanced up from her herbs to see Hawkkit at the entrance to the den. "Hey, Hawkkit. How are you feeling?" She felt nervous being in the medicine den with him; surely he would figure out that she was interested in being a medicine cat.

"Great." Hawkkit seemed a bit distracted as he gazed over the herbs. "What are you doing?"

"Pebblefur asked me to help sort these herbs," Streamkit mewed, motioning to the herbs with her tail. "He just stepped out for a bit to see to the elders."

"What's this one for?" Hawkkit pointed to the pile of large, hairy leaves.

"That's borage," Streamkit replied. "It helps bring milk to queens, and it also lowers fevers."

Hawkkit nodded and looked at the pile with thin spiky leaves. "What about that one?"

"Fennel. I don't know what it's for, but I remember smelling it when Mistysong was giving birth, so it must be used for queens."

Something glinted in Hawkkit's eyes. "Does Grasswave have any deathberries?"

Streamkit bristled. "Yes, he does. But it's poisonous, so he hides it."

"Where?"

Streamkit shrugged. "He didn't say. But it smells pretty different than any other herb in his stock, and they're bright red, so if I needed them for any reason, I could probably find them on my own."

"What happens, exactly, when a cat eats them?"

"Well, I'm not really sure." Streamkit understood why Hawkkit found it so interesting; it was awesome to her that just a couple berries could kill a cat.

Hawkkit nodded. "Thanks, Streamkit. Herbs sure are fascinating." He backed out of the den.

xxx

"Shadekit, Minnowkit, are you all right?"

Shadekit was curled in a ball, moaning, next to Minnowkit. The silver she-cat was stretched out in the moss limply, her face scrunched in pain. Streamkit, Nightkit, and Mallowkit leaned over the two kits, Hawkkit hanging at the back of the group.

"My belly is really hurting," Minnowkit groaned. Shadekit nodded weakly. "Mine too. Do you think it was that funny-smelling mouse?"

"Sounds about right," Nightkit mewed sympathetically. "I'll fetch Pebblefur." Nightkit dashed out of the nursery and returned a bit later with Pebblefur.

Streamkit did notice Hawkkit creep out of the nursery, but she didn't think much of it.

"What's this talk about a bad mouse?" Pebblefur asked suspiciously.

"Minnowkit and I shared a mouse today," Shadekit whimpered. "We thought it smelled a little funny, but we ate it anyways."

"Oh, Shadekit, don't you know that you should never eat prey that smells strange?" Pebblefur pressed his paws gently on her belly, and then on Minnowkit's.

"Are you going to give them herbs to make them sick?" Nightkit asked.

Pebblefur nodded. "I sure am. You kits should know better than to eat rotten prey."

"We figured, if the warriors put it in the fresh-kill pile, it should be safe to eat," Minnowkit reasoned.

Pebblefur laid a few herbs in front of Minnowkit, and the rest in front of Shadekit.

"Yuck!" Minnowkit hissed as she lapped them into her mouth. A few heartbeats later she heaved up several mouthfuls of slime, the mouse clearly visible in the vomit. Shadekit followed suit, ridding her belly of the bad fresh-kill.

"All right, I wouldn't recommend eating anything until tomorrow," Pebblefur told them. "You might just vomit it back up again."

"Thank you, Pebblefur," Shadekit mewed weakly.

Minnowkit nodded, swiping her tongue over her lips. "Yes, thank you."

A yowl suddenly startled the cats, and all but Shadekit and Minnowkit darted into the clearing. Hawkkit raced out of the medicine den, his eyes huge with fear.

"Hawkkit, what's wrong?" Willowbreeze called from the fresh-kill pile. "You should still be in the nursery!"

Hawkkit's tail was puffed out, and his screech rang through the hollow: "Grasswave is dead!"

xxx

**Hey, guys! OMG HE'S DEAD THIS IS CRAY-CRAY. Yeah. All part of the main plot. Hope you enjoyed this badly-written chapter. Seriously, I feel like it was just all over the place, but I had to get everything in there. It's a bit longer than the others, though! ^^ Anyways, have an awesome day/night!**


	7. Chapter Six

**Good morning, everyone! Here's another thanks to icefire0218 for reviewing AND following AND favoriting this story. THANK YOU! :) It means so much to me, honestly! Btw, I looked over chapter four for any grammar mistakes, but I couldn't find any. I'm very sensitive to grammar and I'm always correcting other people, but of course I could still have made a mistake. Could you point out exactly where you saw the mistake so I can fix it? Thank you! Here's chapter six in Nightkit's POV!**

xxx

CHAPTER SIX

"_Cats of ThunderClan, today we lost_ one of our members." Smokestar's sorrowful call rang out through the hollow. "Grasswave, our medicine cat, is dead. It was a suicide; we found deathberries next to him."

Gasps rippled over the crowd of cats, and Nightkit felt her blood run cold. Beside her, Streamkit stiffened.

"Although he is no longer with us physically, he will always be here in spirit." Smokestar glanced down at the elders. "He will be buried tomorrow at dawn, and we will mourn for him tonight. This being said, Pebblefur is now the full medicine cat of ThunderClan."

The gray tabby tom still looked stunned, but he dipped his head solemnly. "Thank you, Smokestar. I will do my best to serve the Clan."

Nightkit glanced at Streamkit, whom she expected to look quite happy, but instead appeared to be stunned. Wouldn't Streamkit be pleased that she could now be Pebblefur's apprentice? "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." Streamkit snapped out of her phase. "I just can't believe it was…it was a suicide."

"Yeah…I guess he was just getting old and kind of crazy," Nightkit mewed, recalling the conversation she'd heard between Pebblefur and Grasswave the previous night when Pebblefur had called him "crazy" and "insane". He had been hearing voices, he said. It would be a wonder if he wasn't going crazy. She turned to Streamkit. "Are you going to say some words at the grieving tonight?"

Streamkit nodded. "I think I will." She was staring at something—some_one._ Nightkit followed her gaze and found that it led to Hawkkit, who was sitting at the back of the crowd next to Willowbreeze. She was rasping her tongue over his ears. Normally, Hawkkit would have been protesting and squirming away, but at that time he looked quite pleased, his eyes half-closed and tail-tip flicking gently.

"Nightkit, can I talk to you?" Streamkit suddenly asked. Nightkit nodded, surprised at how serious and urgent she looked, and they backed into the shade of the oak tree.

Streamkit sat down and stared at her sister. "Something is going on with Hawkkit."

"Yeah, I noticed something strange, too." Nightkit nodded.

"No, there's something else." Streamkit drew in a deep breath. "Earlier today, before Minnowkit and Shadekit had those bellyaches, I was in the medicine den sorting herbs. He came in, and at first he was just asking me about a couple of different herbs. Then he asked if Grasswave had any deathberries."

Nightkit twitched, but said nothing.

"He asked me where they were. I told him I didn't know, and then he just left." Streamkit's claws worked at the ground. "Then, when Pebblefur was in the nursery giving herbs to Shadekit and Minnowkit, Hawkkit slipped out. I didn't think much of it, but then before I knew it, he was yowling that Grasswave was dead. And you heard what Smokestar said! There were _deathberries_ beside him."

"So are you trying to tell me that you think…_Hawkkit_ killed Grasswave?" Nightkit demanded. "That's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard! How stupid does Grasswave have to be to eat deathberries from a kit?"

Streamkit scowled. "But Hawkkit gave Minnowkit and Shadekit that mouse…it was rotten, or something. He gave it to them so they would get a bellyache and call for Pebblefur, so that Grasswave was alone in the medicine den and Hawkkit could do his business."

"This is insane." Nightkit was infuriated; why in the name of StarClan would their brother kill the medicine cat? "Sorry, Streamkit. I'm going to need a _lot_ more proof to sell me that story."

"Even a blind and deaf cat would believe me!" Streamkit hissed. "You're only seeing what you want to see!"

Bristling, Nightkit turned and padded away, towards the nursery, where Minnowkit and Shadekit were fast asleep. She settled down beside them, rested her chin on her paws, and immediately drifted into a light sleep.

All she could see was pitch darkness. Nightkit blinked, trying to find any light, but it was completely dark. But she wasn't alone; she could smell other cats there with her.

Suddenly, pairs of eyes began popping out of the darkness, some amber, some yellow, some blue and green. Nightkit bristled as she realized how many cats were in there. All the eyes were narrowed, glinting in fury, and staring at her.

"What do you want?" Nightkit whispered, crouching low to the ground.

She suddenly felt herself falling; the ground beneath her paws had broken away. Nightkit shrieked as darkness surrounded her once again.

There it was again—the yowling. Cheering. Determined hisses and claws unsheathing and teeth baring…Nightkit squeezed her eyes shut.

"They're dead! They're dead!" the voices were chanting. "Their family is dead!"

_Who's dead?_ Nightkit wondered frantically. _Where am I, and why do I keep hearing these yowls? _

Something prodding her startled her awake. Nightkit gasped and scrambled to her paws, panting. It was dusk, orange light filling the nursery. Streamkit was standing in front of her, her eyes wide. "Nightkit, are you all right?"

Nightkit caught her breath a moment and sat down. "Yeah…I'm fine."

Streamkit shuffled her paws. "Well, I just want to apologize for earlier. I realized that you're right; why would Hawkkit want to do such a thing?"

Nightkit shook her head. _"I_ should be the one apologizing. I was really rude to you. Although your story was quite pieced together, there's no way it could be true. Grasswave was sick in the head. He was old and crazy, and I can completely understand why he committed suicide."

"Yes, you're right." Streamkit nodded and touched her nose to Nightkit's ear. "I'm sorry."

"Me too." Nightkit purred; she really did have the best sister in the whole forest.

xxx

Nightkit watched as the elders laid Grasswave's body down in the middle of the clearing. A line formed, consisting of most of the warriors and apprentices. Streamkit and Pebblefur stood next to each other towards the back.

One by one, each cat leaned over and murmured something to Grasswave, and then padded off. When Streamkit's turn came, she whispered something to him just like any other cat would've done. Although prayers were supposed to be private, Nightkit couldn't help but wonder what she was saying.

"You're not going to sit vigil, are you?" Nightkit asked as her sister approached her. Streamkit shook her head. "No, but Pebblefur is."

"You really want to be a medicine cat, don't you?" Nightkit suddenly blurted out, and felt guilt wash over her when Streamkit stiffened. "I-I'm sorry, Streamkit."

The gray tabby shook her head. "No, it's fine." She sucked in a breath. "Yes, I really do want to be a medicine cat. I can't imagine hurting other cats just over a piece of prey! It's really interesting, and I…I seem to be quite good at it." She hung her head.

"Don't be ashamed!" Nightkit nuzzled Streamkit. "You have every right to choose what you want to be. Don't let me, or Shadekit, or Hawkkit keep you from being what you really want to be. I'm happy you're going to be a medicine cat."

Streamkit nodded, smiling. "Thanks, Nightkit. Well, I'm not sure if I am, yet. I have to ask Pebblefur. He's still very young and isn't really in need of an apprentice yet."

"What if he says no?" Nightkit gasped, widening her eyes.

"I won't."

Nightkit spun around to see Pebblefur standing there behind them. Streamkit leapt to her paws. "Pebblefur! We were just, um, talking about—"

Pebblefur lifted his tail. "Don't fret, Streamkit." His blue eyes twinkled. "Remember what I told you about cats that were chosen to be medicine cats? It looks to me like you're one of them."

Streamkit glowed. "So, that means…"

Pebblefur nodded. "I want you to be my apprentice."

"Even though you're so young?"

"Of course. You seem to show some real talent, and I could definitely use someone as intelligent as you in the den."

"Thank you, Pebblefur!" Streamkit gave a little bounce. "I won't let you down!"

"Hey, we've still got two more moons," Nightkit pointed out softly.

Pebblefur twitched his whiskers. "That's right. You're only four moons old. Well, I'll be waiting eagerly for your apprentice ceremony, but until then, you can help me out whenever you please."

xxx

The scent of blood and crowfood. The shrieks and cheers of cats preparing for battle. The eyes glinting in the darkness. Another night, another dream.

Yet Nightkit still feared them, feared every single dream she had. Each one was as frightening and startling as the last. _Why can't I just have a good night's sleep?_ Nightkit thought, scowling as she sat up in her nest. Whenever things seemed to be going well, the dreams came and haunted her once again. Why was she constantly receiving these dreams? What did they mean, and who were those cats?

xxx

**This was a pretty boring chapter, I know. Don't worry, the next chapter will be their apprentice ceremonies. But yeah, Grasswave's dead and Streamkit will be apprenticed to Pebblefur. How exciting. Sorry it was so boring. Hope you have a great day!**


	8. Chapter Seven

**Hi! Here's a shout-out to LarkspiritofForestClan, who is now following this fanfic. Thanks so much!**

**I know I said this would be their apprentice ceremony, but I decided that I didn't want to do one. Apprentice ceremony chapters are all the same and it's hard to make them interesting. So they're already apprentices, but they've only been so for about a week. Basically this takes place 2 moons after the last chapter. Also, here are some changes that happened:**

**Berrywhisker moved into the nursery, expecting Ripplewind's kits.**

**Applefrost moved into the nursery, expecting Oakfoot's kits.**

**Rainpaw and Poppypaw became Rainpool and Poppyleaf.**

**Quailfeather had Brackenclaw's kits, Owlkit and Birchkit.**

**Enjoy!**

xxx

CHAPTER SEVEN

"_Please point out the coltsfoot." Pebblefur_ watched his apprentice attentively. "And tell me the uses."

Streampaw grinned; that was an easy one. She pointed to a pile of yellow and white flowering plants. "Coltsfoot is used for shortness of breath."

Pebblefur nodded. "Very good. What about water mint?"

Streampaw hesitated, for this was a bit more difficult. She motioned to a bundle of leafy green plants. "Water mint is for bellyaches."

"You got all of them right," Pebblefur mewed, smiling. "Great job, Streampaw. Your training is coming along very well."

Streampaw soaked up his praise. "Thank you."

The sound of pawsteps outside the den signaled a cat approaching. The steps were limping, however. Oakfoot appeared at the entrance, one of his forepaws dangling off the ground.

"Oakfoot, what happened?" Pebblefur asked.

"I've got a cracked paw pad that's really been bothering me," he replied, flipping his paw and holding it out for Pebblefur to see. Streampaw perked her ears in interest; what herb would Pebblefur use?

The gray medicine cat sniffed at his paw pad and nodded. "Yes, there is some cracking. Nothing we can't fix easily." Pebblefur grabbed a couple of yarrow leaves, and then a few poppy seeds for the pain.

_Yarrow?_ Streampaw watched, puzzled, as Pebblefur chewed up the leaves and spread the ointment onto the pad. "Here, eat some poppy seeds. It'll help with the pain. They might make you drowsy, so I'd say no more patrols or training for today. Take it easy on that paw."

Oakfoot lapped up the tiny black seeds. "Thank you, Pebblefur. It's already feeling soothed." He turned and limped out of the den.

"Yarrow, Pebblefur?" Streampaw wondered aloud. "Why did you use yarrow? I thought it was used for extracting poison and making cats vomit."

"Yes, it's used for that, too." Pebblefur straightened a pile of leaves into a neater stack. "You can also use it for soothing cracked pads. If the cat has sore pads, you would use dock."

Streampaw nodded. _There are so many different uses for some of these herbs. What if I can't learn everything?_

xxx

"Hawkpaw, over here!" Streampaw called to the gray tom as he padded into camp with his mentor, Brackenclaw. He looked invigorated as he galloped over to his sister and sat down in the shade with her. "Hey, Streampaw! How's training coming along?"

"Pretty well," Streampaw replied. "There are so many different herbs, though. I just hope I can learn them all."

"Of course you will." Hawkpaw nudged her with his muzzle. "You're the smartest cat I know."

"What about your training?"

"It's going great!" Hawkpaw grinned. "I already caught my first mouse, and Nightpaw and Shadepaw haven't even gone hunting yet!"

Streampaw twitched her ears. "Oh? What have they been doing this whole time?"

"Well, Shadepaw is still learning how to do the hunter's crouch and stalk, but Nightpaw…" Hawkpaw paused. "Now that I think about it, I haven't seen Nightpaw much in the training hollow."

Streampaw tasted the air, catching a whiff of her sister's scent. "Speaking of Nightpaw, there she is now!"

The black she-cat was trudging down the thorn tunnel alone, tail drooping. She stopped at the fresh-kill pile to grab a vole.

"Nightpaw!" Streampaw called. She glanced up and padded over to them. "Hey, are you guys taking a break, too?"

Hawkpaw and Streampaw both shook their heads. "I'm done with training for today," Hawkpaw mewed. Streampaw nodded in agreement. "So am I. You look exhausted, Nightpaw!"

Nightpaw sat and quickly began to eat. "I've got to eat fast. I'm meeting Dustclaw near the ShadowClan border to work on evening stalking."

"Evening stalking?" Hawkpaw echoed. "Why do you need to do that? You don't even know how to fight yet."

Nightpaw sighed. "He's trying to teach me everything in two moons."

"There's no way!" Streampaw cried. "Usually apprentices train for five or six moons! What is he thinking?"

"He wants…" Nightpaw bristled and glanced at Hawkpaw. "He wants me to become a warrior before you and Shadepaw."

Hawkpaw said nothing.

Streampaw shook her head. "But why? That just doesn't make any sense. You can't train an apprentice in two moons. That's impossible."

Nightpaw quickly finished her vole. "I don't know. If I don't do something right, he gets really angry with me. It's only been a quarter moon and he expects me to beat Blazepaw and Emberpaw in a mock fight! He almost didn't even let me come and eat."

"Nightpaw!"

She turned; Dustclaw was standing at the entrance of the thorn tunnel, flicking his tail-tip impatiently.

"I've got to go," Nightpaw muttered as she rose to her paws and shook her black coat. "Bye!" She bounded over to her mentor and the two darted up the thorn tunnel.

"That's unfair," Hawkpaw growled. "Nightpaw is going to be a warrior before me."

"She's not," Streampaw tried to assure him. "There's no way Nightpaw can pass her assessments in two moons. Smokestar won't allow it."

"Who was Dustclaw's last apprentice?" Hawkpaw gazed around the camp.

Streampaw racketed her brain. "I think…Mousefoot? Or maybe Graystream. I don't know."

Hawkpaw yawned. "I think I'm going to go to sleep. I'm pretty tired from training."

"Goodnight," Streampaw mewed as her brother rose to his paws and padded into the apprentices' den.

xxx

"We reign victorious!"

Cheers and shrieks filled the air, and Streampaw clasped her paws over her ears. Who were these cats, and why did they keep entering her dreams?

Suddenly, all was silent. Streampaw could feel tall grasses tickling at her legs, and a gust of wind carried the scent of ShadowClan. Something shiny in the grass caught her eye, and she padded over to it. It flashed in the moonlight, and she could just make out what looked like long rows of jagged silver teeth. _What in the name of StarClan is this?_

"Be careful," Streampaw heard a voice murmur. "Don't go near those. They can kill."

_That's Pebblefur's voice!_

She heard grass rustling and, though the bushes, caught a glimpse of a gray pelt.

"Pebblefur?" Streampaw called out hopefully; it would nice to see a familiar face in such an eerie dream. She took a few pawsteps towards the undergrowth and froze. Two eyes were peering through the leaves, bright and icy blue.

_That's not Pebblefur!_ Feeling panic rise in her chest, Streampaw turned tail and began to run.

"Ouch, Streampaw, wake up!"

Streampaw jolted awake, panting. Emberpaw was standing over her, looking quite agitated. Around her, moss was strewn from Streampaw's nest.

"You were kicking and thrashing in your sleep," Emberpaw hissed. "And you kicked me in the head!"

Streampaw rose to her paws. "I-I'm so sorry, Emberpaw." She gathered her torn moss into a ball and stepped around the sleeping forms of her denmates; she would have to fetch some fresh moss.

Upon stepping outside, Streampaw gasped. The air was sharp and cold, and her breath came out in billowy puffs. Leaf-bare had definitely made its arrival.

The clearing was dim, for dawn hadn't yet arrived. The dawn patrol was gathered around the fresh-kill pile, consisting of Dustclaw, Flowerpetal, Ripplewind, and Nightpaw.

"Good morning, Nightpaw." Streampaw bounded over to her sister, who was sitting away from the warriors. Nightpaw visibly brightened. "Streampaw! What are you doing awake so early?"

"I woke up Emberpaw because I was thrashing in my sleep," Streampaw admitted. "I kind of destroyed my nest, so I'll have to get fresh moss today."

"Were you having a nightmare?" Nightpaw pricked her ears.

Streampaw nodded. "I've been having the same one since I was a kit. It's really creepy."

"What's it about?"

"Well, I'm in this big…" Streampaw thought, trying to remember it. Even though she'd had the dream so many times before, she couldn't actually remember what the setting was. "I actually don't know where I am, but I know that I'm surrounded by unfamiliar cats. They're all cheering and yowling. Sometimes they sound determined, but other times they sound triumphant. And one cat will either yowl, 'We've killed them!', or 'We're _going_ to kill them!'. It's very strange."

Nightpaw stiffened. "I have that dream, too, Streampaw. That exact one."

"No way." Streampaw widened her eyes. "Do you think it's a sign?"

"It makes more sense for you to have it, since you're a medicine cat apprentice." Nightpaw flicked her ears in thought. "It just doesn't make sense that _I_ would. And how is it possible that we have the same dream?"

"Perhaps we should talk to Pebblefur about it," Streampaw suggested.

"Nightpaw, we're leaving." Dustclaw beckoned his apprentice with his tail. Nightpaw rose to her paws. "Well, this is my first dawn patrol. Wish me luck!"

Streampaw watched as she bounded after the warriors into the thorn tunnel. _How _is_ it possible that we have the same dream? I wonder if Shadepaw and Hawkpaw have it, too. What could it mean?_

xxx

**Yay, I think this chapter was a bit longer than the others. By the way, my lovely readers and followers, don't be shy! Review! It means the world to me! :D If you like the story, please let me know! When I get reviews, I feel more motivated to update. Sorry this chapter was a bit boring, but remember the dream that Streampaw had. What is that shiny thing with metal teeth? c; Hope you have a great day, and Happy New Year! Bring on 2013!**


	9. Chapter Eight

**Welcome to chapter 8, my lovelies! I've got another shout-out; this is for mrs. chelsawinchester for following this fanfic! Thanks a ton! Also, in response to your review, thanks again! Hmm, I don't know how I thought of Grasswave…I used to use Grasswhisker but I guess I just thought of Grasswave one day. Not sure! Glad you like it! :)**

**Icefire0218, I've actually debated about this topic for a while. I used to have my medicine cat apprentices sleep in the medicine den, but recently, I've found that it makes more sense if they sleep in the apprentices' den. I know it's not really reflective of the actual Warriors series, which is kind of wrong of me, but it's such a minor issue that I don't feel too bad about going against Erin Hunter. :3**

xxx

CHAPTER EIGHT

"_First we need to remark our_ borders," Dustclaw announced. "Yesterday when I came, the border was so faint that any mousebrained ShadowClan apprentice could have crossed into our territory. Since we've been so focused on the WindClan border, we have been, in a sense, neglecting the ShadowClan border completely." He turned to Nightpaw. "Would you freshen up our borders, please?"

Nightpaw nodded, feeling nervous, and marked where her mentor pointed to.

"Very good, Nightpaw," Flowerpetal mewed. Dustclaw shot the ginger she-cat a glare, as though saying, _this is _my_ apprentice._

"Now, we never did tour the territory, so I'm going to show you—" Dustclaw began, only to be cut off by Flowerpetal. "You never showed her the territory? That's the first thing a mentor is supposed to do with their apprentice."

Dustclaw growled, and Nightpaw stared at the ground, feeling bad that the two cats were arguing about her.

Dustclaw cleared his throat. "Anyways, I'm going to show you the green-leaf Twolegplace. It's right over here."

Suddenly, Ripplewind gasped. "Dustclaw, I just saw something in the grass."

"What is it?" The senior warrior bounded over to the younger one and sniffed at the ground. "It smells like that hard Twoleg material that monsters are made out of."

Nightpaw put her nose to the ground and wrinkled it when she caught a strange scent.

"Look over here!" Ripplewind called a few foxlengths away. The patrol raced over to him, and Nightpaw felt fear crawl up her throat. There in the grass was something shiny and silver that almost looked like an open mouth. On either side of the oval were jagged, pointed teeth.

"A fox trap!" Dustclaw hissed. "We must report this to Smokestar immediately! Be careful and watch where you trod from now on. Where there is one fox trap, there's bound to be more in the area."

"What is a fox trap?" Nightpaw murmured to Flowerpetal as the patrol hurried back to camp.

"It's what Twolegs use to kill foxes," Flowerpetal mewed. "The fox steps unknowingly into the trap and it will snap shut! Cats can get caught, too, so that's why we must be careful."

Nightpaw shivered, imagining the sharp teeth of the trap piercing her leg or tail.

"What I don't understand is the fact that there are fox traps in _leaf-bare_," Ripplewind muttered. "The only times we've ever come across them were in green-leaf, when Twolegs come to green-leaf Twolegplace. Smokestar is going to have a fit when he hears about this."

xxx

"A fox trap?" Streampaw bristled. "What is _that?"_

"Exactly what it sounds like," Nightpaw answered. "It's this shiny silver thing with sharp teeth that clasp around a fox…or a cat."

"Wait." Streampaw's eyes were huge. "With sharp teeth?"

Nightpaw nodded. "It sounds pretty far-fetched, but—"

"That sounds like what was in my dream!"

"You had a _dream_ about it?" Nightpaw was surprised; if Streampaw was already receiving dreams from StarClan, she was bound to be a powerful medicine cat. "Maybe you should tell Pebblefur about these dreams."

"I think I will, but you should too," Streampaw mewed. "Like you said, it's strange for a warrior apprentice to be having dreams."

The two she-cats scampered across the clearing towards the medicine den. "Pebblefur?" Streampaw called as they entered. Pebblefur was leaning over Owlkit, one of Quailfeather's sons, trying to get him to eat an herb.

"Oh, what's wrong with Owlkit?" Streampaw rushed to Pebblefur's side.

"He's got a cough," Pebblefur responded. "It's only minor, but I'm worried he might develop a case of whitecough or greencough."

Streampaw gasped and nudged the tiny kit with her nose. "Owlkit, please eat this. It will make you feel better."

The young kit squealed in protest, but opened his mouth and lapped the herbs into his mouth.

"Good," Pebblefur purred. "Thanks, Streampaw. What's going on?"

"Nightpaw and I need to talk to you about something," Streampaw meowed unsurely. "We've both been having similar dreams since we were kits."

Pebblefur tensed. "Um…what happens in the dream?"

Streampaw explained it to him quickly, and then added, "Last night, the fox trap was also in my dream. I didn't know what it was, but Nightpaw described what it looked like to me."

Pebblefur thought a moment. "I can't explain the fact that you two are both having the same dream, but as for the fox trap, that sounds like a warning from StarClan."

Nightpaw widened her eyes. _He doesn't know how to explain our identical dreams? He's not even attempting to. What is he hiding?_

"So…the fox traps are probably going to cause a lot of trouble?" Streampaw guessed. Pebblefur nodded. "That's how I would interpret it. When Smokestar comes back, you and I will go tell him about it.

Nightpaw followed her sister out of the den, mind buzzing with suspicion.

xxx

"Shadepaw…do you ever have weird dreams?"

Nightpaw, Shadepaw, and Hawkpaw were sitting beneath the oak tree, eating. The sun was sinking quickly in the sky, making the air even colder and sending orange rays of light into the hollow.

Shadepaw nodded. "Yeah! Once I had a dream that Oakfoot's legs turned into oak trees!"

Nightpaw shook her head. "Not like that. Weird…like, creepy? Dreams that occur often?"

"Hmm…no, I don't think so." Shadepaw took a bite of the starling they were sharing. "Do you?"

"Well…" Nightpaw didn't feel as comfortable telling her sister about it. "What about you, Hawkpaw?"

Hawkpaw had been watching the warriors come in and out of the camp, and jumped a bit when his sister spoke his name. "What, now?"

"Do you ever have creepy dreams?" Shadepaw asked.

Hawkpaw dug his claws into the earth, bristling. "Why do my dreams concern you?"

"I was just wondering," Nightpaw muttered disappointedly. It looked like it was just Streampaw and her.

Shadepaw suddenly groaned. "Oh, I just remembered. I'm on the evening patrol."

"Do you get to patrol by the ShadowClan border?" Nightpaw asked. Shadepaw shook her head. "Robinwing said that Smokestar doesn't want any apprentices by the fox traps."

"Did you hear? They found even more!" Stormpaw was padding over to them. "Mind if I sit here?"

"Go ahead." Nightpaw was surprised; Stormpaw was at least 3 moons older than the apprentices. Nightpaw could remember that they were pretty good friends when they were in the nursery, but when he became an apprentice, they never talked anymore.

"How many did they find?" Shadepaw asked him.

Stormpaw thought. "I think they found five or six."

"Wow." Nightpaw widened her eyes. "I wonder why Twolegs are putting them up now. Ripplewind said that usually they put them out during green-leaf."

Stormpaw shrugged. "I don't know; all I know is that these traps mean nothing but trouble for ThunderClan."

Hawkpaw suddenly glanced at the dark gray tom. "Say, Stormpaw. Do you know who Dustclaw's last apprentice was?"

Nightpaw glanced at her brother. Why was he still thinking about that?

"Umm…I think Mousefoot," Stormpaw mewed, sounding taken aback. "Why?"

"Just wondering." Hawkpaw rose to his paws and pushed his way into the apprentices' den.

Shadepaw glanced up when she heard her mentor, Robinwing, calling her name. "Oh, I'd better go. The sunhigh patrol is almost back. Bye, Nightpaw, Stormpaw." She leapt to her paws and bounded across the hollow to the thorn tunnel.

Nightpaw felt awkwardness creep over her.

"So how do you like being an apprentice?" Stormpaw asked. Nightpaw shrugged. "It's all right. Dustclaw is really hard on me, though."

"How so?"

Nightpaw remembered her first training session with him. He'd attacked her, trying to see where her skills were. He had knocked her off her paws, taking her completely by surprise, and then got mad at her for the fact that she wasn't prepared and should've been ready for anything, even her mentor attacking her. "Well…he expects me to be really great right off the bat. He wants me to be a warrior in two moons."

Stormpaw furrowed his eyebrows. "That can't be. Dustclaw seems like he would be such a great mentor!"

"I thought so, too!" Nightpaw agreed. "But he's pushing me really hard. He lets me back into camp for about 3 heartbeats to eat something, and then we have to go out training again. The only reason I'm not training right now is because he's out finding more fox traps."

"Sounds tough," Stormpaw mewed sympathetically.

Suddenly, the sunhigh patrol bounded into the camp, headed by Splashfur and followed by Poppyleaf, Graystream, and Blazepaw. Splashfur looked alarmed. "Smokestar! We scented the rogues again!"

xxx

**Hey! YAY this was a pretty long chapter, but again, fairly boring. Why do you think Pebblefur can't explain the fact that Streampaw and Nightpaw are having the **_**exact**_** same dreams? I dunnoooo! ;) Have a great day/night! **


	10. Chapter Nine

**Hey guys! Sorry I didn't update as much as I could've yesterday; season premiere of Dance Moms came on! LOL that's my favorite show. Anyways, I really appreciate the followers and reviewers! PLEASE review, guys. It really means the world to me. I'm sorry if I sound like a review whore, but really, don't you feel great when you get a review? :) Here's chapter 9, in Streampaw's POV! Enjoy!**

xxx

CHAPTER NINE

"_Do you really think we'll find_ anymore tansy?" Streampaw asked as she padded alongside her mentor through the forest.

Pebblefur shrugged. "I really can't say. The cold really takes a toll on herbs. I'm not desperate for tansy; I have some, but it's just not enough to last through this leaf-bare. I feel like it's going to be a really cold one."

"Where are we headed?"

"Near the abandoned Twoleg nest," he replied. "That's the best place to find it."

Streampaw shivered as a chilly wind ruffled her pelt; she wondered if it would snow soon. She'd never seen snow, only having lived through green-leaf and leaf-fall, but she heard cats talk about it sometimes; by the way they described it, it sounded wonderful.

"You really can't explain why Nightpaw and I have the same dreams?" Streampaw suddenly blurted.

Pebblefur inhaled deeply. "No. The only thing I can think of is because you're sisters."

"Nightpaw told me that she asked our other littermates yesterday," Streampaw explained, "and they said they didn't have any weird dreams."

"I don't know, then," Pebblefur sighed. "Oh, I can smell some! Over here." He squeezed between two bushes, approaching the abandoned Twoleg nest, and motioned with his paws to a tansy plant.

"Wow, there's more than I expected!" Streampaw mewed, sniffing at the plant. It was only a tad bit dried out, but it would definitely still work.

"I'll be right back; I think I smell catmint." Pebblefur stretched his neck, sniffing the air. "You gather as much tansy as you can." He scurried into the bushes.

Streampaw began picking the tansy, letting its scent fill her senses. Tansy had always had a very comforting smell to her, although she wasn't quite sure why.

The snapping of a twig startled Streampaw, and she glanced up wildly. A silver pelt was just barely visible through the leaves of the bushes.

"Pebblefur?" Streampaw called out quietly, feeling her fur prickle. She prayed it wasn't a rogue.

Suddenly, a lithe silver-and-black tom stepped out of the bushes. Streampaw scrambled backwards, her heart thudding.

"Oh, I am sorry!" the tom mewed. "I did not mean to frighten you."

Streampaw crouched low to the ground and fluffed out her fur, attempting to look menacing. "Wh-who are you? What are you doing on ThunderClan territory?"

"ThunderClan?" he echoed. "I do not know of 'ThunderClan'. My sister Mist and I live right behind here." He motioned to the Twoleg nest. "Our mother was killed by Talon not too long ago, so we have been living here."

Talon? Streampaw pricked her ears. Could that be one of the rogues? She scanned the tom; he looked older than her, but not much. He had a slender body, sleek pelt, and long whiskers and legs. He had no muscles and looked rather scrawny, to be quite honest.

"You…you are not one of them, are you?" The tom backed up, his fur bristling a bit and eyes widening. Streampaw shook her head. "No. ThunderClan is against the rogues, too. And me, I'm just an apprentice. A medicine cat apprentice, to be exact. I don't know how to fight at all."

"Nor do I," the tom chuckled. "Is this ThunderClan you speak of…good? Are they nice cats?"

Streampaw nodded. "Yes. Well, they wouldn't be too nice to you if they found you wandering our territory." She flicked her ears. "I shouldn't be talking to you. I'm a loyal ThunderClan cat." She glanced around, tasting the air for Pebblefur; he was still a ways off. "All right. I won't tell my Clan about you and your sister, so long as you stay over here. Don't go past the Twoleg nest."

The tom bowed his head. "Thank you very much, kind she-cat. My sister and I appreciate it greatly." He turned and started back for the nest.

"Wait!" Streampaw called. "What is your name?"

The tom's blue eyes twinkled. "Riddle." He bounded back behind the Twoleg nest, leaving Streampaw stunned.

xxx

"The rogues have been scented again," Pebblefur mewed, "so I need to start teaching you the basics of fighting."

Streampaw bristled. "Fighting? I thought medicine cats didn't fight!"

"Well, they don't, but every medicine cat learns a bit of fighting, just to protect them if they are ever attacked." Pebblefur stepped out of the trees, Streampaw following, to a sandy area. She could see Shadepaw and Hawkpaw having a mock fight, and more impressively, Graystream and Blazepaw a little further off.

"This is the training hollow," Pebblefur announced. "Come over here and we'll start."

Streampaw followed him, feeling a little nervous. She was too clumsy on her paws to fight! What if she couldn't get the moves down?

"First, let's start with the simplest battle move there is," Pebblefur meowed, "the front paw blow." He demonstrated it, whacking an invisible opponent in the head with his forepaw. "Now you try."

Streampaw tentatively lifted her forepaw off the ground and copied his move unsurely. "Like this?"

"Very good," Pebblefur praised. "Now this is the front paw strike. It's very similar, but the claws are unsheathed and it's in more of a downwards motion, like this." He raked his claws through the air.

She repeated the move, imagining a cat's face there, and shivered.

"You've got it." Pebblefur was about to demonstrate another move, but hissing and spitting made the two gray tabbies turn.

Hawkpaw and Blazepaw were locked in battle, both looking very serious. Blazepaw leapt at Hawkpaw, but the gray tom slipped underneath him and batted at his hindquarters with his forepaws. Blazepaw landed messily on his paws, and while he regained his balance for about a heartbeat, Hawkpaw flung himself at the ginger tom, rolling in the sand until Hawkpaw landed on top of the older apprentice, his forepaws at Blazepaw's chest and neck.

Shadepaw cheered. "Way to go, Hawkpaw!"

Streampaw watched as Blazepaw squirmed out from Hawkpaw's grip, looking angry that he'd lost to a younger apprentice.

"Both of you did very well," Brackenclaw, Hawkpaw's mentor, praised. "Blazepaw, you just spent a little too long regaining your balance." He turned to his apprentice. "Hawkpaw, where did you learn to slither under his belly like that? That's a very advanced move!"

He shrugged. "It's just an instinct."

"Your brother is an amazing fighter," Pebblefur murmured. "How long has he been training? Half a moon?"

Streampaw nodded, still in awe. How _did_ Hawkpaw learn those moves? She watched as Brackenclaw led him out of the training hollow, Hawkpaw's tail lifted proudly.

"Do they fight with their claws out?" Streampaw asked, feeling horror creep across her pelt. Neither tom had a scratch on him, but…

"No. Never in training." Pebblefur stretched and then turned to face his apprentice. "Ready to keep going?"

xxx

"They're still alive. They're not dead!"

Now yowls of fury filled Streampaw's ears and she shuddered. Cats were chanting, "Kill them! Kill them!"

Kill who? _Who_ did they want to kill, and _why_ were they constantly haunting Streampaw's dreams?

The forest. Streampaw sighed in relief as she shrieks stopped and were replaced by the sounds of cricket song.

A shiny Twoleg object gleamed in the moonlight, teeth sparkling, almost tempting Streampaw closer. _The fox trap._ She glanced around; where was she? She was in ThunderClan territory, but right along the ShadowClan border. _That's strange. I remember Nightpaw telling me that the fox traps were near green-leaf Twolegplace. _

Streampaw sniffed at the ground, following the strange Twoleg scent until she found another fox trap. _Two?_ Something flashed in the corner of her eye. _Three?_

She began to feel as though something weren't right. Why were the traps so close to the ShadowClan border? Streampaw noticed that the earth had marks in it, as though something had been dragging along the ground. The drag marks led right up to the fox traps, each one coming from the same direction—from green-leaf Twolegplace.

_Did some cat drag these here?_ Streampaw wondered as she padded right up to the border, the Twoleg path. _To trap any ShadowClan cats that cross the border?_

Something pulled her back to the fox traps. She stared at it, noticing that the grass around it was pulled up and sprinkled over it to look more disguised. Streampaw lowered her head, sniffing at it, and felt her belly drop when she picked up a familiar scent.

Hawkpaw.

xxx

**Oooh! Big cliffie here! First of all, who is Riddle? Second of all, how does Hawkpaw know those battle moves? Is he just naturally talented at fighting? And lastly, why did Streampaw pick up Hawkpaw's scent near the fox traps? Hope you enjoyed this short chapter, and have a great day! Don't forget to review if you liked it! :D**


	11. Chapter Ten

**Hi y'all! By the way, I felt like the ending of the last chapter might've been a bit confusing. Streampaw was asleep, and the stuff about the fox trap was a dream. Sorry if I misled you!**

**Guest and Icefire0218—I CAN'T TELL YOU! Dx If I do, I'll spoil the whole thing for you. Sorry! Just keep reading :) You'll find out soon. Kinda. Thanks for reviewing, both of you!**

**Anyways, this chapter is quite, ehm, disturbing. Like it might leave you thinking, 'wtf just happened… why are you doing this, Song?' I assure you, I have my reasons. Enjoy!**

xxx

CHAPTER TEN

"_Nightpaw! For StarClan's sake, you must_ back out the way you came!" Dustclaw lashed his tail. "Do you want to be a warrior, or not? You're acting like a mousebrained kit. I _told_ you, the reason you back out the way you came is because your opponent will spin around, expecting you to emerge from the other side. However, you back out and hook your claws into their fur, dragging them to the ground. That's why it's an _advanced_ move."

Nightpaw remained silent; she knew all too well that if she spoke, even to apologize, Dustclaw would launch into a huge spiel about respect.

Dustclaw sighed. "Let's try it _again,_ for the fifteenth time." He padded about a foxlength away from Nightpaw.

_This is only the _third_ time we've tried,_ Nightpaw thought bitterly, crouching down and bracing herself.

When Dustclaw leapt at her, Nightpaw darted underneath his belly, batting at his hind legs with her forepaws. She managed to slither backwards as Dustclaw spun in the air, and grabbed his haunches with her claws, yanking on them until he fell to the ground.

"Finally you got it right!" Dustclaw shook his coat. "Took you long enough. That's enough training for now. We'll hunt on the way back to camp, and come back after we eat. Tonight we'll practice night stalking near the lake again."

Nightpaw groaned inwardly; she'd barely slept any the previous night from night stalking! _Oh well, at least I won't have any weird dreams._

Dustclaw suddenly veered to the left, probably scenting something, leaving Nightpaw alone. She shivered in the cold air, wishing she'd inherited Smokestar's thick pelt like Shadepaw had. She tasted the air, grinning when she smelled magpie. There it was, pecking obliviously at the base of a tree, perhaps searching for seeds.

Nightpaw crouched, first checking that she was downwind, and crept towards the magpie silently, blue eyes wide and nostrils flared. In one swift leap and bite to the throat, it was fresh-kill.

She examined it; it was pretty plump for a piece of prey in leaf-bare. She lifted it into her jaws and trotted back to camp.

Upon entering, she saw Shadepaw and Streampaw sitting beneath the oak tree, sharing a vole. Nightpaw dropped her magpie onto the fresh-kill pile and glanced around. Stormpaw was making his way from the apprentices' den, looking well-rested.

"Stormpaw!" she called. "Will you share something with me?"

He nodded and bounded over to her. "Did you just get back from training?"

"Yeah," Nightpaw answered, "but I have to hurry. Dustclaw wants me back at the training hollow after we eat."

"Gosh, he really does sound hard," Stormpaw mewed sympathetically. "I'm lucky; Larchwing is really nice and an amazing hunter."

"Were you on the moonhigh patrol last night?" Nightpaw asked. Stormpaw nodded. "That's why I was sleeping. What do you want to eat?"

Nightpaw scanned the pile. "What about that pigeon? It looks pretty good."

"Sure." Stormpaw selected it and the two cats joined Nightpaw's littermates beneath the oak tree.

"Hey, Nightpaw!" Shadepaw greeted cheerfully. Nightpaw waved her tail and sat down beside Streampaw. "Hi. Is Hawkpaw on the sunhigh patrol? He wasn't in the training hollow, but Brackenclaw is here in the camp."

Nightpaw felt Streampaw tense beside her.

Shadepaw shook her head. "He's not on the sunhigh patrol; I just saw them leave. Maybe he's on a hunting patrol."

"Yeah." Nightpaw began to eat, scarfing down half of the pigeon. Stormpaw laughed. "You're either really hungry, or Dustclaw gives you less time to eat than I thought."

Nightpaw's ears turned hot with embarrassment as she began to groom herself.

"How is your training going, Stormpaw?" Shadepaw asked. "Your warrior ceremony can't be too far off."

Stormpaw shrugged. "My training is going well, but I've only been an apprentice for three and a half moons."

"I want to see you and Fogpaw have a mock fight," Nightpaw meowed. "You both have such muscular builds. You're probably amazing!"

"Oh, I saw Hawkpaw and Blazepaw having a mock fight a few days ago," Streampaw chimed in. "It was actually really good! Hawkpaw beat him, even though he's younger."

"Really?" Stormpaw raised his eyebrows. "I've never seen Hawkpaw fight, but I know that Blazepaw is a natural. He's beaten Fogpaw several times before."

"Nightpaw!"

That was Dustclaw; she leapt to her paws and dashed away. "Sorry, guys. I've got to go!"

"Already?" Shadepaw called after her, but she couldn't stop; if she was late, Dustclaw would be really angry.

When Dustclaw and Nightpaw arrived at the training hollow, she was surprised to see that it was empty. _Every cat is probably already back at camp for the day,_ Nightpaw thought, furrowing her eyebrows.

"We're going to start working on badger defense techniques," Dustclaw announced.

Nightpaw was bewildered; why in the name of StarClan did she need to know how to defend herself from badgers so early in her training? _That's right. He's trying to squeeze six moons of training into two._

The scuffling of paws in the sand signaled someone's arrival. Nightpaw turned to see Hawkpaw dashing into the training hollow, eyes blazing with fear. "Dustclaw! Thank StarClan, someone is here."

"What's going on?" Dustclaw demanded. "We're in the middle of a training session."

Hawkpaw caught his breath. "I was hunting near the ShadowClan border and I realized that their scent was a bit too strong. And then I heard talking! It didn't sound like any ThunderClan cats' voices, though."

Dustclaw nodded. "Nightpaw, go back to camp and get help. Hawkpaw, take me to where you heard the voices."

The three cats darted off, Nightpaw in the direction of the camp. _What if ShadowClan is raiding ThunderClan territory?_

She dashed down the thorn tunnel and glanced around wildly for Brackenclaw or Smokestar. There! Brackenclaw was sharing tongues with Quailfeather near the nursery.

"Brackenclaw!" Nightpaw gasped, racing over to the deputy. She quickly explained that Hawkpaw had heard voices by the ShadowClan border.

He leapt to his paws. "All right. Thank you, Nightpaw." Brackenclaw made his way to the center of the camp. "Everyone, listen up! One of our apprentices heard voices near the ShadowClan border and smelled their scent strongly. I'm going to take a patrol over there in case of an attack. Splashfur, Snowstorm, Mousefoot, Larchwing, Flamefeather, Rainpool, Stormpaw, and Fogpaw. Come with me."

The cats gathered near Brackenclaw and pelted off, heading out of the camp and towards the ShadowClan border.

Streampaw bounded over to Nightpaw. "Nightpaw! Did you hear the voices?"

Nightpaw shook her head. "Dustclaw and I were in the training hollow, and Hawkpaw raced in and told us!"

Nightpaw could've sworn she saw something flash in Streampaw's eyes, but it left as quickly as it came. Nightpaw touched her sister's shoulder with her tail-tip. "Is something wrong? Every time I mention Hawkpaw's name, you look like you've seen a ghost from StarClan."

"No!" Streampaw shook her head quickly. "Nothing. I just…" She silenced herself, watching as Smokestar leapt onto the Highledge. "Cats of ThunderClan! We need to prepare for an attack. It's unlikely, but it's better to be safe than sorry. Pebblefur, Streampaw, get herbs for wounds ready."

Streampaw nodded, dashing into the medicine den.

"I want a warrior keeping guard at the nursery, elders' den, and medicine den," Smokestar declared. Poppyleaf raced over to the elders' den, Ripplewind to the nursery, and Flowerpetal to the medicine den entrance.

Smokestar glanced at the senior warriors left in the camp. "Robinwing, Willowbreeze, and Graystream, I want you at the camp entrance. Everyone else, try to hide so you can jump out at any warriors that get into the camp."

"If they even attack," Shadepaw muttered to Nightpaw, who was headed behind the warriors' den. Nightpaw twitched her ears. "Hey, it's better to be prepared. If they _do_ come, they'll be surprised!"

Nightpaw crouched behind the warriors' den, shivering as she realized that this could be her very first battle. _Calm down, Nightpaw. Don't get your hopes up. There's not a very big chance of them getting past the patrol._

The sound of approaching pawsteps made Nightpaw bristle. _ShadowClan?_

"Pebblefur!" That was Stormpaw's voice. Nightpaw peered through the thorns of the warriors' den. He was racing through the tunnel alongside Fogpaw and Hawkpaw, eyes wide with fear. "Pebblefur!"

The medicine cat darted from his den. "What's wrong? Is someone hurt?"

Fogpaw nodded. "It's Dustclaw. He—"

The gray apprentice didn't have to finish; the scent of blood made Nightpaw's stomach quake. She leapt out from behind the warriors' den. Had ShadowClan cats attacked? Was Dustclaw _dead?_

She gasped when she saw Brackenclaw and Snowstorm slowly making their way down the thorn tunnel. Dustclaw was hanging limply from their jaws. His right hind leg was a mass of something shiny and silver, and deep red blood

"Streampaw, I'm going to need tons of cobweb!" Pebblefur called into his den. He rushed over to the senior warriors as they laid Dustclaw on the ground, panting. "Great StarClan, what happened to him?"

Hawkpaw looked like a terrified rabbit. "Before the patrol came, I—I was showing him where I heard the ShadowClan voices. His leg got caught in a fox trap!"

xxx

**Ohemgeeee! Yes, Dustclaw's leg got caught in a fox trap. How did this happen, you may wonder? Eeeep scary shiz! Hope y'all enjoyed my pleasantly long chapter :3 Have a great day/night!**


	12. Chapter Eleven

**Hi everyone! Thanks for another kind review, icefire0218! :D Hehe, I love seeing Dustclaw suffer. I hate him; he's seriously a jerk. Even though I created him. Anyways, on with chapter 11!**

xxx

CHAPTER ELEVEN

"_Rest, Streampaw. We've done all we _can."

Streampaw gazed over the limp form of Dustclaw, who was asleep, and sat down beside him. His breathing was quicker and shallower than normal. She sniffed at his paw pad, which seemed rather warm. "Pebblefur, I think he's got a fever."

Pebblefur rose to his paws and checked. "It must be from the wound. Streampaw, fetch me some feverfew."

Streampaw scanned the rows of herbs and grabbed two feverfew leaves. Pebblefur aroused Dustclaw, who was still in pain from his leg. "Can you eat these?" Pebblefur held the feverfew in front of his muzzle. Dustclaw lapped them into his mouth and drifted back to sleep.

"Very good, Streampaw," Pebblefur whispered. "You're learning very quickly."

Streampaw curled her tail. "Thank you. But you're an amazing mentor."

"How would you like to sleep in here tonight, to help me if there are any complications?"

Streampaw dipped her head. "I would be honored." She curled up into one of the nests made for patients and allowed herself to sleep.

"They are becoming more powerful each day. What are we going to do?"

"Kill them!"

"When are we going to kill them?"

"NOW!"

The voices were determined, excited, ferocious. Streampaw shivered, but sighed in relief when she found herself in the forest. She was sitting by the lake, watching the breeze ripple the surface. The air was cool, not cold, as though it were leaf-fall. _It's nice to have a normal dream like this, for once…_Streampaw thought contentedly.

Dread suddenly prickled her fur. She never had normal dreams; something was going to happen at any moment. Streampaw turned, scanning the undergrowth, but she saw nothing unusual.

_What is the significance of the lake?_ she wondered. _StarClan brought me here for a reason. They warned me about the fox traps by the ShadowClan border, and looked what happened._ She glanced back at the lake. _Something is going to happen here. But what?_

xxx

Streampaw awoke to the sound of scuffling paws. She opened her eyes, sitting up in her nest, and watched as Pebblefur chewed up a mixture of goldenrod, raspberry leaf, and marigold to spread over the wound. The old, blood-soaked cobwebs had already been stripped off Dustclaw's leg, and fresh ones were stacked there beside them.

"Do you need some help?" Streampaw asked. Pebblefur shook his head. "I already put some stinging nettle and comfrey on it for the—"

"How is he?" Smokestar pushed his way into the medicine den.

"Well…he developed a fever from his wound, but it seems to have gone down," Pebblefur explained, spreading the poultice onto the wound gently. "His wound is still bleeding, though."

Smokestar gazed down at one of his most senior warriors, sorrow filling his eyes. "He's lucky it was just his leg. Will he ever be able to walk again?"

Pebblefur sighed. "I can't say at this point. It's only been a day. His leg is broken, that's for sure, but…"

Streampaw flattened her ears; she hadn't known it was _broken._ What if Dustclaw couldn't be a warrior anymore?

"I'll let you know, Smokestar." Pebblefur dipped his head respectfully to the leader. Smokestar nodded and turned. "Thank you, Pebblefur, Streampaw. I know you're doing all you can." He padded out of the den.

"I feel like I'm somewhat responsible for this," Streampaw murmured. Pebblefur flicked his ears. "How so? You had nothing to do with this."

"But…" Streampaw shook her head. "I had the dream. Remember? The dream about the fox traps."

"You didn't know there would be some by the ShadowClan border," Pebblefur assured her.

"That's just it!" Streampaw bristled. "I _did!_ I had another dream, Pebblefur. I was at the ShadowClan border and there were three more fox traps. I thought it was unusual because Nightpaw told me that the fox traps were only by the green-leaf Twolegplace. And it looked as though they'd been dragged along the ground."

Pebblefur paused for a long time, his tail-tip just barely twitching.

Streampaw braced herself; it was _her_ fault that Dustclaw was hurt, and now she was going to get what she deserved.

"Streampaw, you had no way of knowing that it was real," Pebblefur mewed quietly. "You're just an apprentice. You wouldn't have known. But next time, if you have any dreams that are unusual, let me know. It's rare that cats receive prophetic dreams, but important." He rose to his paws. "I'm starved; I don't know about you. Want to share something?"

Streampaw nodded. "Sure."

Pebblefur padded out of the den, and Streampaw gazed at Dustclaw. He was gritting his teeth in his sleep, probably in pain. She sat down beside him. "I'm sorry," she whispered, "I could have prevented this. I just hope you can still be a warrior."

xxx

"So there weren't even any ShadowClan cats?" Nightpaw glanced at Stormpaw.

The gray tom shook his head. "No sign of them! Not even a trace of their scent over our border! The only cats there were Hawkpaw and Dustclaw, whose leg was caught in the fox trap!"

"I didn't even know there were any fox traps by the border," Shadepaw murmured thoughtfully.

"Me neither!" Stormpaw's eyes were wide. "That's why we were all so surprised when we saw Dustclaw writhing on the ground in pain with a fox trap snapped around his leg!"

Streampaw shuddered, wishing they could talk about something else.

Nightpaw glanced at her sister. "How is he coming along?"

"Well…" Streampaw remembered what Pebblefur had told Smokestar, but she felt as though she shouldn't share that information with the group of apprentices. "It's, uh, not infected or anything. So that's good."

"I'm sure he'll be fine, Nightpaw," Stormpaw assured her. "But while he's healing, how are you going to train?"

Nightpaw shrugged. "I guess I'll go with you or Hawkpaw until he gets better."

"Do you think Dustclaw will be mad at Hawkpaw?" Shadepaw wondered aloud. "I mean, it was just a false alarm."

"It wasn't Hawkpaw's fault he stepped in a fox trap." Stormpaw shook his head. "He was just doing exactly what he was supposed to do to protect the Clan."

Streampaw remembered her dream, how she'd picked up a faint scent of Hawkpaw near the fox traps. Was that just a foreshadowing that he would be involved? Or was it a warning that Hawkpaw had really caused it? She shook her head. No, no, Hawkpaw didn't cause it. He couldn't have.

"I guess you won't be a warrior in two moons now," Shadepaw chuckled. Nightpaw nodded and laughed. "I'm glad. I want to become a warrior with you and Hawkpaw."

Streampaw jolted. She remembered how angry Hawkpaw seemed when he found out that Nightpaw would be a warrior before him. She remembered how Hawkpaw wasn't anywhere to be found the previous day, right before Dustclaw had gotten his leg caught. She remembered the scent, the scent on the fox trap in her dream, how the traps had been dragged across the ground and grass sprinkled over them to look camouflaged.

What if Hawkpaw had set this all up?

What if Hawkpaw had lied about the voices, just to lead Dustclaw to the very spot that he'd pushed the fox traps to?

What if Hawkpaw truly believed that Nightpaw would be a warrior before him, and wanted to get rid of the cat that would make it happen?

Streampaw raced out of the camp.

xxx

**Oh em gee. I know. Okay, REALLY short chapter, but I felt like if it was too long, it would take away from the essence of the discovery and realization that Streampaw felt LOL WUT DOES THAT EVEN MEAN. So I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and I'll definitely try to make the next one longer. Have a great day! :)**


	13. Chapter Twelve

**Hola! **

**Guest—thank you! :D YOU'RE epic for reviewing. LOL how cheesy…**

**Icefire0218—I really don't want to spoil it, but I'll at least tell you that no, Dustclaw is not going to die just yet. :) Thanks!**

**Lakestorm—thanks so much! I really appreciate your reviews. That last one made me laugh :D**

**GOSH I HAVE SUCH AMAZING REVIEWERS! :,) Remember guys, a review a chapter keeps Song happier! That doesn't rhyme very well but who cares? ;)**

**This chapter takes place one week (a quarter moon) after the last one. So Nightpaw and Streampaw have been apprentices for a little over half a moon, I believe. This is a Gathering chapter, so enjoy!**

xxx

CHAPTER TWELVE

_The mouse was completely oblivious that_ it was being stalked. Nightpaw flared her nostrils, taking another silent pawstep closer.

A sudden sharp wind blew, and Nightpaw sighed when she realized it was upwind. The mouse immediately smelled her and scampered off. She sat up, mentally beating herself up. _How could you forget to check if you were downwind? Mousebrain!_

It was like Dustclaw was still there with her, pushing her and scolding her. It was much more peaceful without him, but Nightpaw felt guilty when she noticed that. _He's in a lot of pain! Have a heart, Nightpaw._ The previous night, when Nightpaw went to visit him, he was in a complete funk. His hind leg was broken, and Pebblefur didn't think he would ever be able to walk again. He told her that he wanted her to keep up her training with Brackenclaw or Robinwing for the time being, until Smokestar decided what to do.

Nightpaw met back up with Shadepaw and Robinwing, padding back to camp with them. Neither apprentice had caught any prey, but Robinwing, being an astounding hunter, had managed to catch a vole. "The forest is pretty empty today," she commented as they made their way back. "The prey must know it's a full moon tonight."

Shadepaw and Nightpaw exchanged glances. "A full moon?" Shadepaw looked excited. "That means there's a Gathering!"

Robinwing nodded. "I've put in a good word for you, Shadepaw. I hope Smokestar considers taking you."

Nightpaw's tail drooped; Dustclaw hadn't been happy with her training, and probably told Smokestar that she didn't deserve to go. _Everyone will get to go except me._

When they entered the camp, Smokestar was leaping onto the Highledge. "Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey meet beneath the Highledge for a Clan meeting!"

Nightpaw followed Shadepaw to sit at the far left with the other apprentices.

"As most of you already know, there's going to be a Gathering tonight," Smokestar announced. "I have chosen who will be going. Pebblefur is staying in camp with Dustclaw, but Streampaw will be attending. Any elders that wish to come along can do so."

_Just get on with it!_ Nightpaw thought, feeling anticipation tingling in her paws.

"The cats that I've chosen to attend are the following: Snowstorm, Splashfur, Robinwing, Willowbreeze, Oakfoot, Ripplewind, Flamefeather, Rainpool, Poppyleaf, Stormpaw, Fogpaw, Shadepaw, Nightpaw, and Hawkpaw."

"Hey! We get to go!" Shadepaw nudged Nightpaw. "I can't wait!"

"Mousefoot and Graystream, you will be in charge of the camp until we return," Smokestar mewed. The two gray cats dipped their heads in response.

The crowd of ThunderClan cats separated, either heading out to patrol or hunt, or to eat.

"Can we come, too?" Minnowkit bounded from the nursery over to Nightpaw, Mallowkit at her heels. "We're practically apprentices!" They were almost the same size; Minnowkit and Mallowkit were both due anytime for their apprentice ceremonies.

Nightpaw laughed. "I wish you could come along."

"I miss you being in the nursery," Minnowkit mewed. "Owlkit and Birchkit aren't much fun. They're not allowed out of the nursery, so it's just me and Mallowkit now."

"I'm sure your apprentice ceremony will arrive very soon," Nightpaw assured the silver tabby. "I'm excited for you to train with us."

"Me too!" Minnowkit gave a bounce.

"I've got to eat before the Gathering," Nightpaw meowed. "See you!" She raced over to the fresh-kill pile to eat.

xxx

"Is every cat ready?" Smokestar called.

Nightpaw stood between Stormpaw and Hawkpaw, paws itching with excitement. They'd just arrived at the island; all they had to do was cross over the tree trunk.

"I wonder if there'll be any arguments," Hawkpaw murmured in Nightpaw's ear. Nightpaw furrowed her eyebrows. "I hope not. That's breaking the truce."

Smokestar leapt onto the log, padding easily across.

"Be very careful," Stormpaw warned her. "It's kind of scary the first time. Just don't look down."

Nightpaw nodded, suddenly feeling nervous. What if she tripped? Or worse—what if she fell off? She glanced anxiously into the lake, watching the black water lap against the shore. She definitely didn't know how to swim.

"You go first," she told Stormpaw, letting him step in front of her. He leapt onto the branch gracefully, making his way slowly across. Nightpaw drew in a deep breath and jumped, paws landing on the rough bark. _Don't look down,_ she reminded herself as she regained her balance and stepped lightly across the log.

When Nightpaw landed on the island, Stormpaw touched her shoulder with his tail-tip. "Pretty good, for your first time."

"It wasn't that bad." Nightpaw twitched her whiskers, waiting as the other apprentices joined them.

The six apprentices gazed around the island, letting the warriors and elders pass them. Nightpaw felt self-conscious; there were so many cats there, and WindClan hadn't even arrived yet!

"There's Clovergaze," Streampaw mewed, staring at a light brown she-cat. "And Rushingstream."

"Are those the other medicine cats?" Shadepaw asked. Streampaw nodded. "Clovergaze is from ShadowClan, and Rushingstream is RiverClan. I'm going to go sit with them."

"Have fun," Nightpaw meowed as her sister padded to join them.

Hawkpaw motioned with his muzzle to a group of young-looking RiverClan apprentices. "They look like they're new apprentices, too."

"We should go meet them," Shadepaw suggested. The two gray cats padded over to them, leaving Nightpaw with Fogpaw and Stormpaw.

"Oh, look." Fogpaw pointed with his tail. "Larkpaw and Kestrelpaw are over there with some ShadowClan apprentices."

Stormpaw nodded and turned to Nightpaw. "Want to meet them?"

"Sure." She followed the two identical toms over to the far left side of the clearing.

"Hey!" One of the RiverClan apprentices, a brown tabby tom, rose to his paws. "It's Fogpaw and Stormpaw!"

"Hi," Stormpaw greeted, "this is Nightpaw."

Nightpaw dipped her head in greeting. "And you must be…"

"Kestrelpaw," the tabby tom replied. He motioned to a lighter brown tabby she-cat. "This is my sister Larkpaw. We're from RiverClan."

Larkpaw nodded to the two ShadowClan apprentices, a gray-and-white tom and a dark brown she-cat. "These are Cloudpaw and Mousepaw."

"Nice to meet you," Nightpaw mewed politely. Fogpaw nudged her. "Look, WindClan is here."

A yowl startled Nightpaw and silenced the crowd. The four leaders were sitting up on the branches, gazing down over the cats. "Cats of all Clans," a black-and-white tom declared, "WindClan has arrived, so let's begin the Gathering."

"Who's that?" Nightpaw murmured to Stormpaw.

"Swiftstar," he replied, "the RiverClan leader."

"RiverClan is doing well this leaf-bare," Swiftstar announced. "We've got three new apprentices—Volepaw, Barkpaw, and Stripepaw."

They rose to their paws as cats from every Clan cheered. Nightpaw realized that they were the ones Hawkpaw and Shadepaw had gone off to sit with.

With a start, Nightpaw realized that she'd have to do the same when it was Smokestar's turn. _Every cat will be looking at me!_

Next, a dark brown tabby she-cat rose to her paws. "That's Brindlestar," Stormpaw whispered.

"ShadowClan is also doing well," she proclaimed. "There have been some fox traps near the green-leaf Twolegplace."

Nightpaw bristled; they were having the same problem!

"However, no cat has gotten hurt from them," Brindlestar continued. "One of our elders, Longwhisker, has gone to hunt with StarClan. But with death you also have birth. One of our queens, Sunfeather, gave birth to Lionfang's son,Goldkit." She sat back on her haunches.

Smokestar then stood. "ThunderClan is also having problems with fox traps near green-leaf Twolegplace."

_Is he going to mention Dustclaw's injury?_ Nightpaw stiffened. _We might sound weak!_

"Quailfeather has given birth to two sons, Owlkit and Birchkit. The father is our very own deputy, Brackenclaw. We also have four new apprentices: Hawkpaw, Nightpaw, and Shadepaw are training to be warriors." Smokestar's eyes gleamed with pride.

Nightpaw slowly rose to her paws, feeling heat burn in her ears, as cats from every Clan gave yowls of encouragement.

"Streampaw has been apprenticed to Pebblefur to train in the ways of a medicine cat," Smokestar continued, and sat down.

More cheers echoed in the trees as Streampaw rose shyly to her paws.

Lastly, a lithe tortoiseshell she-cat began to speak: "WindClan is doing well this leaf-bare, also. We have a new warrior, Rockfoot, and our medicine cat apprentice has earned his full name, Seedfur."

Nightpaw cheered along with the others.

The four leaders leapt to the ground, padding over to meet their deputies.

"Now what?" Nightpaw wondered aloud. Stormpaw shrugged. "That's it. Now we leave."

xxx

"How was it?" Emberpaw scampered across the clearing over to Nightpaw and Stormpaw.

"Great," Nightpaw answered, exhausted. She couldn't wait to curl up in her nest and sleep. She followed Emberpaw into the apprentices' den, flopped into her nest, and closed her eyes.

Immediately, Nightpaw was plunged into her nightmares again.

xxx

**Pretty uneventful chapter, but I suddenly remembered that I needed to do a Gathering, 'cause there's no way I could just skip their first Gathering! And the length of this chapter makes up for the shortness of the last one. Hope you enjoyed and have a great day/night! :)**


	14. Chapter Thirteen

**Hey guys! I am sooooo sorry about the lack of updates lately. School started back up 2 weeks ago and I have been crazy busy. Fortunately, I have a 3-day weekend, so I'm going to try to update again tomorrow. Sorry for keeping you waiting!**

**Mrs. Chelsawinchester—thanks! Yeah, please don't spoil it after I worked so hard to make it all suspenseful and shiz! Hehe thanks for reviewing!**

**Remember Riddle? If not, here's a quick recap: Streampaw ran into him while looking for tansy and felt strangely inclined to protect him. He makes his next appearance in this chapter! He is going to be a very important character, so I hope you don't hate him, or anything. Anywho, enjoy!**

xxx

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

"_Streampaw, would you mind getting some_ more cobwebs from the forest?"

Streampaw glanced up; Pebblefur was standing over Dustclaw, whose wound had closed up a few days ago. However, they were completely out of cobwebs in case any cat needed them.

Streampaw shook her head. "No. I'll be right back." She hurried out of the camp, shivering from the cold earth underpaw.

There were cobwebs all around her, Streampaw knew, but she padded past them, making her way to the abandoned Twoleg nest. She was hoping to run into Riddle again; he'd been on her mind since she'd met him. She wanted to know where he came from.

As Streampaw approached the Twoleg nest, she tasted the air, feeling disappointed when she didn't scent him.

"Who are you?"

Streampaw jumped when she heard a faint, timid voice behind her. She spun around to see a silver she-cat standing there, looking nervous.

"Wh-who are _you?"_ Streampaw asked, bristling. "This is ThunderClan territory." However, Streampaw had an idea of who this she-cat might be.

"I am called Mist," she mewed. "Please do not hurt me." She backed into the bush, eyes wide.

"I won't hurt you," Streampaw assured her. "You're Riddle's sister, aren't you?"

Mist nodded. "Are you a friend of his? Let me take you to him." She flicked her tail, leaping gracefully over the bush and towards the Twoleg nest. Streampaw followed cautiously, ducking underneath a low-hanging branch, and stepping behind the nest. A pile of Twoleg rubble was there, covered in leaves and grass, almost hiding it.

"Riddle?" Mist called. "You have a guest."

The black-and-silver tom slipped out from a small opening that two standing slabs of wood created. "Oh! You are that ThunderClan cat I met. I never did catch your name."

Streampaw nodded, dipping her head in greeting. "Streampaw."

Riddle smiled. "That is a curious name. What does the 'paw' mean?"

"It means I'm an apprentice," Streampaw explained. "I guess you wouldn't understand, since you're not in a Clan."

"What have you come for?" Riddle asked, sitting down and wrapping his tail neatly over his paws.

"Well…I was just wondering about you since we met," Streampaw meowed, "and I wanted to know—where are you from?"

Riddle twitched his whiskers. "We come from the mountains."

Streampaw widened her eyes. "Are you from the Tribe of Rushing Water?"

He tilted his head. "I do not know of that, either. We lived in a small cave with our parents, but one day when we were young, my father got into a squabble with Talon over a piece of prey. Talon attacked and killed my father. My mother, sister and I ran away, and hid in a dense forest, just that way." He flicked his tail in the direction of the Moonpool. "Talon found us and killed my mother. Fortunately Mist and I managed to escape, and we have been living here ever since."

Streampaw gasped. "I'm so sorry." _Poor Riddle! He's had such a hard life._ "The rogues are back now. They're not over here, but…"

Riddle's eyes widened and Mist pressed herself against her brother.

Streampaw felt another stab of sympathy for the cats. "Don't worry. If they come creeping around the forest, we'll be the first to know about it. We won't let them get to you." She knew that, if any cat found out about Riddle and Mist, they would probably chase them off the territory. However Streampaw felt incredibly fond of them, although she'd only just met them.

Riddle bowed his head. "Thank you, Streampaw. We will continue to stay on this side of the shack. I do not want to get in trouble with your Clan."

A wind blew from the west, bringing with it the scent of nearby ThunderClan cats. Streampaw bristled. "Hurry, hide! My Clanmates are approaching!"

"Meet me here tonight when the moon is at its peak," Riddle mewed urgently, "if you can."

Streampaw nodded and raced out from behind the Twoleg nest, quickly beginning her gathering of cobwebs.

Snowstorm appeared from the bushes, followed by Mousefoot, Poppyleaf, and Emberpaw. He dipped his head in greeting. "Hello, Streampaw."

Streampaw forced her gray fur to lay flat. "Hi. I'm just collecting some cobwebs for Pebblefur."

"All the way out here?" Snowstorm glanced around. "I'm sure there are plenty back by the entrance of the camp."

"Well…" Streampaw shrugged. "I wanted to go on a bit of a walk to stretch out my legs."

Snowstorm nodded. "It's not very safe to come out by yourself, so next time, ask a warrior or apprentice to accompany you."

"Right." Streampaw smiled as the patrol turned towards the ShadowClan border. _Whew! That was close._

xxx

"_What?"_

Streampaw bristled.

"By the looks of it, he won't be able to continue being a warrior." Pebblefur's voice was full of sorrow.

"But…but we healed his wound!" Streampaw sputtered. "And there's no infection!"

"His leg is broken, Streampaw." Pebblefur shook his head. "It's not just broken, though. It seems to me like it's been crushed."

Streampaw stared at her paws; Dustclaw was a senior warrior, a magnificent fighter and a great contribution to the Clan! All of that was snatched from under him by a fox trap. And to think, Streampaw could have prevented it! "This is just like the story of Cinderpelt."

Pebblefur nodded gravely. "It is. However, there's no way Dustclaw can become a medicine cat. He's going to have to retire."

"Dustclaw, an elder?" Streampaw gasped in horror. "The poor cat. He loves being a warrior." _If Hawkpaw really _did_ cause this, he's going to get his wish—Nightpaw won't be a warrior before him._ "Oh! What about Nightpaw? Dustclaw is her mentor."

"I'll have to talk to Smokestar about assigning her a new one," Pebblefur mewed.

Streampaw sighed and padded slowly out of the den, into the sun-streaked clearing. Warriors and apprentices were milling about the camp, going about their usual business. A hunting patrol was returning, and Robinwing, Shadepaw, and Nightpaw were heading out of the camp to train. Dustclaw would never get to train an apprentice again. He would never get to hunt or fight or patrol the borders. He would sit in the elders' den, remembering his good times, longing to run through the forest, paws scarcely skimming the ground. She wished she could tell the warriors of ThunderClan to appreciate their warrior hood while they had it. One day it might get torn away forever, even if it's not their fault. Even if they couldn't help it. And maybe, just maybe, it may be one of their own Clanmates that causes it. Streampaw glanced briefly at Hawkpaw, who was sitting beneath the oak tree, sharing a starling with Blazepaw, and shivered. _Hawkpaw didn't do it. He _wouldn't._ He's the most loyal cat I know, and would do anything for his Clan._

Streampaw stared at her brother, feeling her pelt prickle as his icy-blue eyes met hers. He grinned. _But is that_ really_ true?_

xxx

A freezing gust of wind ruffled Streampaw's pelt and she shivered, her paws aching as they trudged through the snow. Today had been the first snowfall of leaf-bare; she had never seen snow before, but Streampaw already knew she didn't much like it. She recalled Wingfeather commenting as the first flakes began to fall, "The snow has come early this season. I wonder why that is?" Streampaw had sighed when she realized that it was probably going to be a very long, cold leaf-bare.

She wished she was back in the apprentices' den, curled up in her warm nest. _Why am I doing this? I shouldn't be meeting with a cat outside the Clan! _She mentally scolded herself, but she was secretly thrilled to see Riddle again.

Streampaw paused briefly at the entrance to the dirtplace, glanced around, and scampered into the undergrowth. She caught a slight scent of the moonhigh patrol near the thorn tunnel, but it was headed towards the WindClan border. Galloping past the camp, she continued on towards the abandoned Twoleg nest.

Upon arriving, Streampaw tasted the air, frowning when she didn't find a scent of either loner there. However the snow made it hard for her to smell much anything. "Riddle?" Streampaw called out quietly.

There was no response.

_Maybe he forgot, _Streampaw thought disappointedly, stepping around the Twoleg nest and glancing into their small den. Neither cat was there.

Rustling in the undergrowth signaled their arrival, and Streampaw spun around. Sure enough, the two silver tabbies were leaping over piles of Twoleg rubble.

"Streampaw!" Mist exclaimed. "What are you doing here?"

Riddle raced over to greet her. "Hello. Sorry I am late; we were trying to hunt."

"By the looks of it, it wasn't very successful," Streampaw commented, observing their lack of prey. Riddle nodded and shrugged. "We are not very skilled in hunting."

"Show me your best hunter's crouch."

Appearing unsure, Riddle crouched down, looking awkward in contrast to his usually graceful demeanor. Streampaw purred in amusement. "Well, you're never going to catch prey like that."

Riddle sat up. "What am I doing wrong?"

Streampaw thought a moment. "I don't know, exactly. I don't know how to hunt myself, but just from watching my Clanmates, I can tell something is off."

Riddle visibly drooped. "Mist and I have a hard time finding food. Especially now, when the air is cold. My mother died when we were too young to hunt, so we were never taught how."

"I bet I can ask my sister to teach me how," Streampaw suggested. "Then I'll pass on everything I learn to you!"

Riddle twitched his ears. "Why can your sister hunt, but you cannot?"

"I'm a medicine cat apprentice, whereas my sister is a warrior apprentice," Streampaw explained, but immediately realized that this loner had no idea what she was talking about. A strong, icy wind nearly knocked her off her paws.

"We should go into the den," Riddle mewed, motioning to his nest with his muzzle. Streampaw was a bit skeptical, but her mind immediately changed when she stepped inside. The walls and floor were covered in moss and soft pine needles, making it feel springy and warm. It was rather roomy in there, too, Streampaw noticed as the three cats slipped in easily and had lots of space. Mist curled up in the farthest corner, and Streampaw and Riddle settled down beside each other, gazing outside the den.

"Tell me about the Clans, please," Riddle mewed. Streampaw nodded. "There are four of them. Well five—including StarClan, our warrior ancestors. I'm part of ThunderClan, but the others are WindClan, ShadowClan, and RiverClan."

"What is a 'medicine cat'?" Riddle asked.

"I'm training to be one," Streampaw answered. "The medicine cat helps sick or injured cats, helps queens give birth, that kind of stuff. He also interprets signs and prophecies from StarClan, so it's not uncommon for them to have foretelling dreams." She hesitated, remembering her dream involving Hawkpaw and the fox traps. "The medicine cat doesn't fight or hunt, which is why _I_ don't know how to hunt. My sister is a warrior apprentice, meaning she does all the fighting and hunting. The Clan is made up of mostly warriors and apprentices, but there are also queens, elders, and kits, whom the warriors feed first."

"Is there a leader of each Clan?"

"Yes, a leader and deputy. Along with the medicine cat, they're the most highly ranked cats in the Clan." Streampaw thought a moment. "When the leader dies, the deputy becomes the leader and appoints a senior warrior to be deputy."

"Sounds nice," Riddle commented quietly, "every cat working together for the good of the Clan."

Streampaw watched as the snow fell gently, feeling peace settle over the forest. "It is."

xxx

**I know, quite a boring chapter. And long, too! Is Hawkpaw really as loyal as Streampaw keeps telling herself he is? Why does Streampaw feel so drawn to Riddle? Hmmm…well, I hope you enjoyed this boring chapter and have an awesome day!**


	15. Chapter Fourteen

**Hey everyone! Tis SATURDAY! Or I guess we can call it CATURDAY! :D I'm all rested and stuff and ready to write! **

**Icefire0218: Yeah, basically. He has to move to the elders' den now. :( **

**Mrs. Chelsawinchester: I wish I could tell you but I can't! x.x I don't want to ruin the whole thing. Thanks for reviewing!**

**Hope you enjoy this chapter!**

xxx

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

"_Say, Nightpaw," Streampaw mewed thoughtfully, "do_ you think you could show me a few hunting techniques?" The two littermates were sitting in the shade of the oak tree, finishing a mouse.

Nightpaw twitched her ears. "Why?"

Streampaw shrugged. "Well, medicine cats aren't taught how to hunt, and I feel like it might be useful one day to know the basics. Let's just say the whole Clan is starving and I go out one day to find some herbs. And there in the bushes is a whole colony of mice!"

"Um…won't Pebblefur get angry?" Nightpaw asked.

"Of course not." Streampaw shook her head. "This will also give you practice for when you're a mentor one day. What do you say?"

Nightpaw rose to her paws; she knew something else was up, but she didn't want to push. "All right. I'll show you the hunters' crouch." She crouched down into a perfect hunters' crouch, her tail and rear low to the ground, ears swiveled forwards, eyes wide.

"Wow!" Streampaw breathed. "Let me try." She tried to mimic Nightpaw's stance.

Nightpaw shook her head. "First of all, your tail is sticking straight in the air. Keep all your weight on your haunches; if it's on your front paws, the prey will feel you coming before you even get close. Also, your rear has to be low to the ground. It will feel kind of awkward, but it becomes second nature with enough practice."

Streampaw lowered her rear a bit. "Like this?"

"Lower."

"I don't think I can go much lower!" Streampaw flopped to the ground. "Was it this hard for you? You made it look so easy!"

"It was hard at first," Nightpaw responded, "but it's been conditioned. Now I can do it without even thinking."

Streampaw leapt to her paws and shook the snow and dust off her pelt. "What's next?"

Nightpaw frowned. "Well…next you just need to perfect your hunters' crouch. Then I can show you the stalk."

"But it'll take forever to perfect that stupid crouch!" Streampaw scowled, kneading the thin snow with her paws impatiently. "Can't you just show me now?"

"The hunters' stalk won't work if your crouch isn't right!" Nightpaw was getting fed up with her sister. Why did she want to know how to hunt so badly?

To her relief, Stormpaw bounded over to them. "Hey Streampaw, Nightpaw." He dipped his head in greeting. "Nightpaw, want to go hunting with Fogpaw and me?"

Nightpaw nodded. "Of course!" She waved her tail to Streampaw. "Just keep practicing it, okay? Remember what I told you." She dashed off after the two gray toms.

"I'm not sure if this will be such a successful hunting trip," Stormpaw commented as they exited the camp. "The scent of snow is making it impossible to smell any prey!"

"I don't think any prey is out, anyways," Fogpaw pointed out, "it's far too cold."

"Stupid leaf-bare," Nightpaw growled. "And this snow is horrible, too! It'll probably just get heavier and heavier. How are we going to provide for the Clan?"

"Think about RiverClan," Stormpaw meowed. "When the river freezes, it's impossible for them to fish. They have to actually hunt."

Nightpaw tilted her head. "I didn't know they ate other prey besides fish."

"Well, they eat water voles and stuff like that," Fogpaw explained.

Nightpaw stiffened, tasting the air. "I think…I smell something."

Stormpaw followed suit, parting his jaws slightly. "I do, too. It's…"

"Sparrow!" Fogpaw mewed suddenly, darting off to the left towards WindClan territory. Nightpaw and Stormpaw exchanged excited glances before dashing after him.

They skidded to a halt as they approached the stream separating WindClan and ThunderClan territory. Fogpaw was nowhere to be found.

"I knew he was a fast runner, but…" Stormpaw gazed around. "How could he have gotten away so quickly?"

"We weren't that far behind him," Nightpaw agreed. "Can you smell him?"

Stormpaw shook his head. "The WindClan scent marker is too strong."

Nightpaw heard voices, and she turned to face the training hollow a little ways off. "Let's ask them if they've seen Fogpaw," she suggested, and Stormpaw nodded.

The two apprentices padded up to Blazepaw and Graystream, who were practicing battle moves.

"Hey, Stormpaw, Nightpaw." Graystream nodded in greeting.

"Hi, Graystream." Stormpaw dipped his head. "We were just hunting with Fogpaw and he ran off after a sparrow. We don't know where he's gone. Did you see him pass by here?"

Graystream thought a moment. "No, I don't think so. Blazepaw, did you see him?"

The dark ginger tom shook his head.

"Sorry," Graystream mewed. "I'm sure he's not too far away."

Nightpaw dipped her head again. "Thank you. Sorry for interrupting." She turned to Stormpaw. "Well, what do you think we should do now?"

"Let's keep hunting," Stormpaw replied. "I'm sure Fogpaw will be at the camp when we return."

xxx

"Hey, Nightpaw, I think I've got it!" Streampaw immediately raced up to Nightpaw as she entered the camp. She crouched down, her tail down but her rear still sticking up.

Nightpaw wasn't really concentrating on her sister's crouch. "Has Fogpaw been in the camp since we left?"

Streampaw sat up. "No, I don't think so. But I wasn't really paying attention."

"I'll go check in the apprentices' den," Stormpaw suggested, placing his only catch—a scrawny pigeon—on the fresh-kill pile and hurrying off to the den. He stuck his head in and a heartbeat later pulled it back out. "He's not in here!"

Nightpaw felt dread prickle her fur. "Where could he be? He should definitely be back by now; it's almost sundown."

"Smokestar!" Robinwing dashed into the camp, followed by Poppyleaf, Ripplewind, and Shadepaw. "We scented the rogues again!"

Smokestar rose to his paws from beneath the Highledge where he'd been sharing a mouse with Willowbreeze. "Where?"

"Along the WindClan stream, near the Moonpool!" Robinwing panted. "It smelled very fresh. They must have just passed through there."

"Brackenclaw," Smokestar called to his deputy, "gather up a patrol of senior warriors. We need to secure the area."

Brackenclaw rounded up Robinwing, Snowstorm, and Splashfur, and Smokestar followed them out of the camp.

"What if Fogpaw was caught by the rogues?" Stormpaw gasped, panic tainting his voice.

"He couldn't have been," Nightpaw assured him. "We would have scented them. Besides, Robinwing said the scent was by the Moonpool. We weren't near there."

"I think we should look for him." Stormpaw's eyes trailed to the darkness of the forest. Nightpaw shook her head. "It's late now, and the rogues could be anywhere. I'm sure he'll be back soon."

Still, Nightpaw wasn't so sure.

xxx

_Where am I?_

The scent of blood hung strongly in the air. Nightpaw shivered; an icy drizzle soaked her fur and a cold wind rustled the stiff, skinny branches. She could just barely smell WindClan over the musty blood scent. _I must be near the WindClan border._ Nightpaw strained her ears. Cricket song…the gentle patter of rain on the trees…the sound of rushing water.

_The WindClan stream,_ Nightpaw realized, taking a few pawsteps toward the sound. The water looked like sleek black fur, gleaming in the moonlight, only interrupted by the rain falling tenderly into it.

Nightpaw began to pad slowly along the stream, the scent of blood growing stronger and stronger. Suddenly she stepped in something wet. Narrowing her eyes, she tried to figure out what it was, but it was too dark. She took another step, again feeling the sticky wet substance on her paw pads.

Nightpaw gasped as something hit her paw, hard and cold…and furry. The scent of blood was completely overwhelming her now. _It's a body!_ She felt panic rise in her chest.

She jolted awake. The den was completely silent, feeling emptier than usual. Fogpaw still had not returned, but someone else was missing. Nightpaw sat up and glanced around. Streampaw wasn't in her nest, either.

_That dream,_ Nightpaw thought, _it must mean something._ She stepped carefully around the sleeping forms of her denmates and out into the clearing. A cold rain was falling, chilling Nightpaw to the bone. A search patrol for Fogpaw was just leaving the camp. Nightpaw sneaked into the dirtplace and out into the chilly night.

_The WindClan stream,_ she remembered, bounding to the left. She trekked through the forest until she arrived at the black stream. _But in the dream, I wasn't in a clearing. I was in the trees._ Nightpaw glanced around; the trees to her left towards the Moonpool grew right up to the stream. _I must've been up there._

Nightpaw made her way quickly up the stream, the cold wind flattening her whiskers to her face and ruffling her black fur. Finally trees surrounded her, and the scent of blood faintly reached her senses. _Blood! I must be getting close._

She continued along the stream, further than she thought. She was growing tired, but the growing scent of blood kept her going.

Her paw hit something wet. _There!_ Nightpaw bent her head down, sniffing at it. _It's blood. Of course. But whose is it? Where is the body?_ She took a few more pawsteps and felt it.

Bile rose in her throat and Nightpaw gave a choked gasp as she rolled the body over to face her. Its dark gray fur was covered in blood, mangled and sticky. Three claw marks were slashed across its chest and its face was twisted in a gruesome snarl.

Nightpaw let out a strangled cry as it slowly dawned on her who this body belonged to: Fogpaw.

xxx

**Awww :( bye-bye, Fogpaw. I feel like this chapter was really rushed but then got really slow. Sorry if it was boring! I tried to make the suspense grow a little, but I think I made it drag on too much. Sorry! Well, I gotta go do chores and get ready to go watch Paranormal Activity 4 with my friend. Hope you enjoyed and have a great day! :)**


	16. Chapter Fifteen

**Hi everyone! I wanna give a shout out to RosetheOwl for favorite-ing this fanfic! Thanks so much, it really means a lot!**

**So, I'm sorry I haven't updated in a while. I was in a haze towards the end of the school year, taking my SAT and finishing up all my classes and tests. Fortunately I was exempt from taking any finals, so yay! I also received all As for the year, so double yay! I got out of school on June 6, but I'm just now updating. To be honest I kind of didn't know where to pick back up on this story. I felt bad for leaving it because there are (a few) people that enjoy reading this and I also felt like I was letting myself down. I have so many great plans for this fanfic and I would hate to see all my work and ideas go to waste. The drama hasn't really even started, my friends! (:**

**Anyways, I hope you enjoy this chapter! By the way, this chapter takes place the same night that the last chapter did, when Nightpaw found Fogpaw's body near the Moonpool.**

xxx**  
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CHAPTER FIFTEEN

"_That's right!" Streampaw mewed, smiling as_ Riddle crouched in the snow. "You're doing great!"

Riddle sat up. "Am I? Thank you, Streampaw."

"Pretty soon you'll be a real hunter," Streampaw praised him, curling her tail in pleasure. "You'll be able to catch the fastest rabbit and the fattest vole, even in the middle of leaf-bare."

"Well, I doubt that much." Riddle groomed his silver and black pelt, which was already wet from the cold rain that was falling. "But I will at least be able to provide for Mist."

"Maybe…" Streampaw thought a moment. "Maybe I could teach you and Mist how to fight."

Riddle twitched his ears. "Fight? I am not sure I can."

"Neither am I, but I'll eventually have to learn, won't I?" Streampaw pointed out. "Medicine cats learn the basics of fighting, just in case they're attacked, so that they at least have a chance of survival. When I start learning how, I can teach you, if you want."

"That sounds nice," Riddle meowed. "I really appreciate you doing all this, Streampaw. My sister and I are so grateful."

Streampaw shook her head. "Don't be. Every cat should know how to provide for himself, whether he's in a Clan or not."

A sudden yowl shook the forest.

Streampaw leapt to her paws, straining her ears for any additional noise. "What was that?"

Riddle's eyes were wide with fear as he shrugged.

"Something's wrong." Her pelt prickled. "I can feel it. Something is very wrong."

Riddle touched her shoulder with his tail-tip. "Perhaps you should go back to your Clan."

Streampaw nodded and rose to her paws. "I'll try come check on you and Mist later, okay? Just to make sure you're all right." She turned and plunged into the black forest, leaping over the familiar logs and rocks, narrowing her eyes as the cold drizzle pelted her face, until she approached the thorn tunnel.

She skidded to a stop as a group of cats rushed out in front of her. "What's going on?" Streampaw asked, but no cat listened to her. They disappeared to the left, as though heading for the training hollow.

Streampaw raced into the camp, where cats were milling about, eyes wide with fear. The apprentices were clustered near the entrance of their den, murmuring in low voices. She rushed over to them. "Shadepaw, what's going on?"

Shadepaw turned, jumping at her sister's voice. "It's Fogpaw. Something's happened to him."

Emberpaw nodded. "Nightpaw wouldn't say, but judging by the way she looked, it must be horrible."

"Great StarClan," Streampaw breathed, "was Nightpaw okay?"

"She was fine," Shadepaw assured her. "Just shaken."

Emberpaw shook her head. "I was surprised when she suddenly leapt out of her nest in the middle of the night. I tried to get her attention, but she was already gone."

Streampaw felt sick. Had Nightpaw noticed that she wasn't in her nest? She tried to focus on Fogpaw. "I've got to go help Pebblefur. If Fogpaw comes back injured, he'll need me." She spun around, starting for the medicine den, but Shadepaw stopped her. "Pebblefur's already gone with the patrol. He was looking for you everywhere, though."

Streampaw frowned; if Pebblefur had gone with the patrol, Fogpaw's condition must be serious. She prayed he was all right.

xxx

Streampaw gasped as the strong scent of blood hit her nostrils. She glanced up, watching as Robinwing and Brackenclaw carried a bloody mass of dark gray fur into the camp.

A heart wrenching cry pierced the night as Oakfoot scrambled over to the body of his former apprentice, pushing his nose into his fur. Stormpaw's blue eyes were wide, unblinking, and he suddenly turned tail and raced into the apprentices' den.

Streampaw squeezed her way through the crowd of cats over to Nightpaw. She covered her sister in licks. "Nightpaw, I was so worried! What happened?"

"It…it was a dream," Nightpaw mumbled. "I had a dream, and got up and went the way that I went in the dream. And then I found him." She shuddered.

Streampaw draped her tail over her sister's back. "Why don't you go get some sleep? You're probably in shock, you poor thing."

Nightpaw shook her head. "I need to talk to Stormpaw."

"He…he ran into the apprentices' den," Streampaw informed her. "But I think he just needs to be alone right now. You know how much he loved Fogpaw."

Nightpaw sighed, her shoulders drooping.

"Who could've done this?" Streampaw wondered aloud. "That's what I'm wondering. Was there any WindClan scent around?"

"No." Nightpaw tensed. "It wasn't WindClan, but there was a scent."

"Whose scent?" Streampaw had a feeling she knew where this was going.

She shivered. "Rogue scent."

Streampaw could tell that her sister felt uncomfortable, so she tried to change the subject. Before she even opened her mouth, she heard a hiss from across the crowd: _"Streampaw!"_

She spun around. Pebblefur was weaving his way through the crowd towards her, his fur ruffled. "I need to see you in my den."

Streampaw shivered; she knew exactly what he was going to say to her. She had been out of the camp—alone—in the middle of the night without telling any cat. When he needed her, she hadn't been there. She'd been too busy training a _loner! _What kind of medicine cat apprentice was she? Tail drooping, Streampaw followed him around the crowd into his den.

"Where were you?" Pebblefur hissed the moment they set paw in the den. "I wasted a lot of time looking and asking around for you!"

"I…I was taking a walk," Streampaw lied. "I couldn't sleep."

"That's hardly an excuse," Pebblefur spat. "You know apprentices aren't allowed out of the camp alone, especially at night! Especially without telling any cat where they're going!" He stared at her, eyes blazing. "Or maybe you had something to do with Fogpaw's death."

Streampaw gaped at her mentor. "What? No! I don't know anything about it! I wasn't even over there—"

Pebblefur sighed and sat down, curling his tail over his paws. "I know, Streampaw, I'm sorry. I'm just so distraught over his death. There are no clues leading to who did it, but earlier this evening a border patrol had caught a fresh scent of rogues near where his body was found. It's very obvious that they were the ones who murdered him."

Streampaw shuddered. "What do they want with us? Why won't they leave us alone?"

Pebblefur sighed. "Well, I'm still very upset with you. I guess I'll have to give you a punishment. You can't leave camp for any reason other than going somewhere with me or making dirt."

"For how long?" Streampaw asked, feeling guilt creep over her pelt.

Pebblefur thought a moment. "Half a moon."

"Okay." Streampaw dipped her head. "I'm sorry I let you down, Pebblefur." The guilt was now almost unbearable. Had it been her fault that Fogpaw had died? She glanced out the den entrance, gazing at the crowd of mourning cats leaning over Fogpaw's body. What if Pebblefur had spent so much time looking for her in the camp that he hadn't made it in time to save Fogpaw? She'd risked the safety of her Clanmates for a couple of loners! She was such a mouse-brain!

When Pebblefur dismissed her, Streampaw padded into the drizzly clearing. The elders were digging up the muddy earth while cats stood in a line, giving Fogpaw a prayer before heading back to their dens. Streampaw stepped into the line behind Hawkpaw and Shadepaw, who both looked groggy and shocked.

"Did you get in trouble with Pebblefur?" Hawkpaw asked. Streampaw nodded. "Yes, but I deserve it. I wasn't there for the Clan when it needed me."

Shadepaw touched her sister's shoulder with her tail-tip. "It wasn't your fault. Robinwing told me that Fogpaw had been dead for a while before they found him. There wasn't any way you or Pebblefur could have saved him."

"Where were you, anyway?" Hawkpaw eyed her. "I didn't even notice you'd left."

Streampaw shrugged and mumbled, "On a walk." She quickly changed the subject and glanced around. "Where's Nightpaw?"

"In Smokestar's den," Shadepaw replied, "with Brackenclaw and Robinwing. They're discussing what happened."

The cat in front of the littermates padded away from Fogpaw's body, and Shadepaw and Hawkpaw stepped up to it and leaned over to send a prayer with him to StarClan. Streampaw noticed for the first time that Oakfoot and Stormpaw were there, bending over Fogpaw's body, their eyes closed and noses pushed into his fur.

Once her littermates were done, Streampaw pressed her nose to his flank. "I'm sorry this happened to you," she whispered. "I wish I would've been there for you, even if you were dead long before I could've done anything. You were an amazing cat, and if only I'd gotten to know you better. Rest in peace."

Suddenly exhausted, Streampaw staggered into the apprentices' den, flopped into her nest, and fell asleep almost instantly.

Her dreams were filled with blood and shrieking that night, along with the overwhelming feelings of guilt, grief, and fury.

xxx

**Eeeep. Poor Fogpaw! Sorry about the short-ish chapter, but I hope you enjoyed! Please review if you liked it, and have an awesome day! (:**


	17. Chapter Sixteen

**Hey everyone, I'm here with chapter 16! Shout-out to Hollyleaf Rules and Mila Nila for favorite-ing this fanfic! It seriously means a ton to me, but if you like it, PLEASE don't hesitate to review. I LOVE interacting with my readers! (: I know a lot of people read but don't bother to review, and I really hope that will change!**

**By the way, since I'm nearing chapter 20, I'm now deciding whether or not I want to make the fanfic 20 or 25 chapters. I honestly think I'll just go with the flow, and wherever it draws to a close will be the end. I don't think I'm going to be able to wrap up the whole thing by chapter 20, but we'll just see how it shakes out! **

xxx

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

_Concentrating hard, Nightpaw and Shadepaw raced_ towards each other. Nightpaw skidded onto her shoulder, hooking her forepaw around her opponent's and tripping her. Shadepaw fell into the snow and reappeared, eyes shining. "Great job!"

"Very good, Nightpaw," Robinwing praised. "I think you've just about got it. Try it one more time with Hawkpaw."

Nightpaw backed up, her panting breaths coming out in swirly white puffs of air, and crouched down. Hawkpaw followed suit, a gleam in his eye. _Oh, great. He's going to try something, isn't he?_ Nightpaw thought dully.

"Go!" Robinwing announced, and the two apprentices bounded toward each other. Nightpaw twisted and slid onto her shoulder, reaching her forepaw out to trip Hawkpaw, but he leapt over her outstretched arm and bowled into her. The two rolled down the snowy slope together, Nightpaw hissing and spitting, until Hawkpaw stopped them and pinned her down. "Gotcha!"

"Hawkpaw!" Brackenclaw growled. "You were not supposed to do that. Stand up and apologize."

Ears flattening, Hawkpaw dipped his head. "Sorry."

Nightpaw scrambled to her paws, shaking the snow from her black pelt. "It's fine. Just stop doing that, okay? You're never going to learn."

Hawkpaw stuck his tongue out at her, and she rolled her eyes. _I love him, but sometimes Hawkpaw is such an immature mouse-brain!_ She thought for a moment as she headed back up the slope. _But really, how _does_ he know all these moves? We've never gone over a lot of them. He's an amazing fighter._

"Okay, you three," Brackenclaw meowed. "Since you've all practiced tripping your opponent successfully, I think you deserve some lunch. Why don't you head back to camp and share something from the fresh-kill pile?"

Shadepaw leapt joyfully into the air. "Thanks, Brackenclaw!"

Nightpaw followed her littermates away from the training hollow, admiring the freshly fallen snow. To her right, the WindClan stream was still, covered with a thin sheet of ice. She shivered as an image of Fogpaw's mutilated body filled her mind. It had been four days since she'd found it near the Moonpool, but Nightpaw still didn't feel the same as before.

Upon entering the camp, Nightpaw followed her littermates to the fresh-kill pile. As they picked out a scrawny rabbit to share, she realized that she didn't feel all that hungry for some reason. Shadepaw motioned to the space just beside the medicine den where Emberpaw, Blazepaw, and Streampaw were sitting and chatting. "Let's join the other apprentices!"

Nightpaw noticed with a sinking feeling that Stormpaw was the only apprentice missing. She hadn't seen him since Fogpaw died, and she was dying to talk to him. But in all honestly, she had no idea what to say to him. She didn't think she'd ever be able to find the words to comfort him. Fogpaw had been his brother and best friend. Nightpaw couldn't imagine losing one of her littermates! But she knew she had to try. Leaving him alone all the time would make him even more depressed.

Nightpaw poked her head into the apprentices' den. Stormpaw was curled in a tight ball, his back facing her. She ducked inside, stepping over the nests before sitting down beside him.

It was silent for a moment as Nightpaw racketed her brain, wondering what to say to him. Fortunately for her, it was Stormpaw who spoke first. "Thank you, Nightpaw."

Nightpaw tilted her head. "What for?"

"For finding my brother," Stormpaw mumbled, "and for coming to visit me."

"Well…" Nightpaw shuffled her paws, "I wanted to make sure you were okay. I mean, I know you aren't, but…"

Stormpaw gazed up at her, and Nightpaw was startled by the piercing pain that was visible in the depths of his blue eyes. "I will be. But, tell me, how did you know where he was?"

"I had a dream," Nightpaw meowed slowly. "I was running through the forest, and I smelled blood. I followed the scent and eventually came across a pretty gruesome-looking body. When I woke up, I was worried that it was real. Turns out it was, and the body in my dream was…" Her voice trailed off.

Stormpaw widened his eyes. "So, you had a foretelling dream?"

"I guess." Nightpaw shrugged. "I get weird dreams often."

"Like what?"

Nightpaw was a bit anxious to tell him her dreams. She hadn't ever told any cat besides Streampaw and Pebblefur about her dreams. "Well...they're usually really creepy. There are a bunch of cats yowling and it smells like blood and crowfood. And I get them all the time, too."

"That's odd," Stormpaw commented. "Have you ever talked to Pebblefur about them?"

Nightpaw shrugged. "Yeah, but he didn't think much of them." She wished they could change the subject. She didn't want Stormpaw to think she was strange or different. "So, um, want to share some fresh-kill?"

Stormpaw smiled. "Sure. You pick."

xxx

Nightpaw laughed as she batted snow into Stormpaw's face. He sneezed, shaking his head and twitching his ears free from the icy clumps, and crouched low into the snow. "I'm going to get you for that!"

"Not if I get you first!" Nightpaw lashed her tail, spraying snow over his dark gray pelt. She was overjoyed that Stormpaw had finally emerged from his funk and started acting like himself again. It had started with a couple words, then the sharing of a piece of fresh-kill, and now they were teasing each other and acting like kits. Nightpaw realized with a jolt that she really enjoyed being with him.

"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey meet beneath the Highledge for a Clan meeting!" Smokestar's yowl filled the hollow, and cats from every rank of the Clan rose to their paws and gathered in a clump below him.

"I wonder what's going on," Nightpaw murmured as she padded alongside Stormpaw towards the crowd of cats. Was Stormpaw being made a warrior? Or perhaps Minnowkit and Mallowkit were becoming apprentices!

"Cats of ThunderClan, I perform this ceremony with a heavy heart," Smokestar announced. "We recently lost one of our apprentices, Fogpaw, much too early. He was so young and full of energy."

Nightpaw could see Stormpaw bow his head and stare at his paws. She touched his shoulder with her tail-tip in an attempt to comfort him.

"Not so long ago, we also lost one of our warriors too early," Smokestar continued. Nightpaw widened her eyes; who had they lost?

Smokestar gazed over the crowd of cats. "Although he still brims with life, he has lost his ability to hunt and fight. It will be almost impossible for him to carry on his warrior duties. Dustclaw, is it your wish to give up the name of warrior and go to join the elders?"

Nightpaw's heart sank. Dustclaw really had been a great mentor, full of wisdom and strength, even if he was often very hard on her. She'd never wished that this would be his fate.

Dustclaw nodded, his eyes full of sorrow. "It is not, but it must be done."

Smokestar leapt down from the Highledge and rested his tail on Dustclaw's shoulder. "Your Clan honors you and all the service you have given us. I call upon StarClan to give you many seasons of rest."

Dustclaw dipped his head, but said nothing.

"Dustclaw! Dustclaw!" Nightpaw lifted her voice to cheer along with the rest of her Clan.

Smokestar climbed back onto the Highledge. "Before the accident, Dustclaw was a mentor to Nightpaw. Now it is time to give her a new mentor."

Nightpaw suddenly felt nervous; she wasn't prepared to go through a second apprenticeship ceremony. She smoothed down her chest fur, made sure there weren't any clumps of snow in her black pelt, and made her way through the crowd of cats to the Highledge.

"Due to the fact that Oakfoot recently lost his apprentice, and his first apprentice at that, he will be the new mentor to Nightpaw." Smokestar smiled down at the tabby tom.

Oakfoot smiled, hurried over to Nightpaw, and touched noses with her. Nightpaw could feel the happiness coming off him in waves. She knew how devastated he had been to lose Fogpaw.

Smokestar leapt off the Highledge, dismissing the Clan, and Oakfoot turned to Nightpaw. "I know I may not be as good a mentor as Dustclaw, but I'll try my best."

"Nonsense," Nightpaw purred. "You'll be a wonderful mentor. I hope I'm as good an apprentice as Fogpaw was."

Nightpaw turned and scanned the crowd of cats, searching for Dustclaw. _There!_ He was slinking towards the elders' den, his head and tail drooping as he limped around the crowd of cats. She darted over to him. "Dustclaw!"

He turned slowly.

"I…I just wanted to say, thank you for being my mentor," Nightpaw stammered. "You were a great teacher."

Dustclaw shook his head. "I'm sorry, Nightpaw. I pushed you too hard, didn't I?"

Nightpaw didn't respond, not sure what to say.

"There was no way you could've been a warrior in two moons," Dustclaw continued. "Not even the most naturally talented apprentice could learn everything in that short a time period. I just wanted to push you to be the best you could be."

"You were a wonderful mentor," Nightpaw assured him. "You've mentored tons of cats before, and I was lucky to have had you, even if it was for a short time." She touched her nose to his shoulder. He didn't move away from her like she'd expected, and Nightpaw smiled. "Thank you, and I'm sorry this has happened to you."

"Nightpaw, come over here!" Hawkpaw was a few foxlengths away, calling to her. Nightpaw dipped her head to Dustclaw and bounded over to him. "What is it?"

Hawkpaw puffed out his chest. "Now you won't be a warrior in two moons!"

"I guess I won't," Nightpaw agreed. Hawkpaw grinned. "I'm going to be a warrior before you, I bet."

Nightpaw flicked a pawful of snow into his face. "I doubt it!"

Hawkpaw suddenly grew serious. "What do you mean, you doubt it? I'm the best fighter out of all the apprentices in the Clan, even Stormpaw!"

"I was kidding, Hawkpaw." Nightpaw widened her eyes. "What's the big deal?"

Hawkpaw kneaded the snow with his claws. "Do you doubt my abilities? I'm going to be leader of ThunderClan one day!"

Nightpaw stepped backwards, startled. Why was Hawkpaw so angry all of a sudden?

"When I become leader, I'm going to exile all the cats that doubted me before," Hawkpaw muttered, "and you'll be one of them!" He turned and darted into the apprentices' den, leaving Nightpaw very confused.

"Nightpaw, what's wrong?" Streampaw bounded over to her from just outside the medicine den. "What did you say to him?"

"I…I didn't think he would get so _angry!"_ Nightpaw murmured. "He said he was going to be a warrior before me, and I said that I doubted it. Then he got really mad."

Streampaw stiffened. "He's still talking about that? Ever since we became apprentices and Dustclaw said you had to be a warrior in two moons, he's been determined to stop that from happening. All he ever talked about was being a warrior before you and Shadepaw."

"But why?" Nightpaw wondered aloud. "We're all probably going to be warriors around the same time. Why does it matter who becomes one first?"

Streampaw shrugged. "He said he wants to be leader of ThunderClan one day. Maybe he's afraid that, if he's not a warrior before us, he'll be overlooked."

"I see…" Nightpaw understood. Hawkpaw had been ambitious ever since he was a young kit. He had always taken charge of any adventures they'd embarked on, been the leader in every game they played, and ultimately bossed everyone in the nursery around. She understood why he wanted to be a warrior before them—if he was, the cats of ThunderClan would be impressed by him and expect him to eventually be deputy.

That kind of ambition was a little unnerving to Nightpaw. Why did he snap at her like that?

With a pang of fear, Nightpaw remembered the day Dustclaw's leg got caught in the fox trap. It had been Hawkpaw to come and warn them of the ShadowClan voices along the border. It had been Hawkpaw to bring Dustclaw to the area that he'd supposedly heard them. She remembered how, according to the patrol that secured the area, there hadn't been any ShadowClan scents at all. No sign that they'd been there.

What if Hawkpaw had planned all that? What if he'd actually lied about the whole thing, just to lure Dustclaw to the fox traps and injure him so that she wouldn't be a warrior before him?

She shook her head. Impossible. He wouldn't.

But something in the back of her mind whispered _oh yes, he _definitely_ would._

xxx

**OOOO that's creepy, huh? Remember how Streampaw had that dream about the fox traps and she kind of caught on that Hawkpaw caused the accident? Now Nightpaw is slowly getting the hint! Sorry this chapter was kind of boring, but I realized that I never gave Nightpaw a new mentor! I was originally planning on making Snowstorm her mentor, but upon noticing that Oakfoot had just lost his apprentice, it only made sense to give her to him. Even though she's main character and should have a good mentor and whatnot. WHATEVER. I hope you guys enjoyed this NICE LONG chapter. I really did because now we see a teensy tiny bit of Storm x Night fluff! Have a great day and don't forget to review! (:**


	18. Chapter Seventeen

**Okay, well to be quite honest, I don't have much planned for the present. I have some awesome ideas and plots for when they're all warriors and such, but for now, I really don't know what to do. I'm thinking really hard about plans for their apprenticeship. If anyone has any ideas, feel free to leave them in a review! It's kind of sad, too, because I don't even know if anyone is reading and following this fanfic. ): That's why I love getting reviews—because they remind me that people DO read my fanfic. Without further ado, here's chapter 17!**

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CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

"_It wasn't him. He didn't have_ the right eye color."

"Well then, we're just going to have to look harder, aren't we?"

"How old should they be?"

"Around seven moons. How many times have I told you this?"

"I asked him how old he was before finishing him off. He said ten moons."

"Then it obviously wasn't him, you idiot! Now scram, get out of my sight! Tonight we're going hunting again..."

Streampaw jolted awake, panting, and glanced around the den wildly. Was that a dream, or was that whispering inside the den? Every cat was fast asleep. It must've been just a dream. It was a different dream, too, one she'd never had before.

With a flood of guilt, Streampaw remembered Riddle and Mist, how she'd let them down. She hoped they were okay, and wished she could check on them.

After quickly grooming herself, Streampaw emerged from the medicine den. It had snowed overnight once again, and the icy blanket was now more than halfway up her legs.

"Hey, Streampaw!" Shadepaw greeted her from beside the apprentices' den. She was sharing a pigeon with Nightpaw, who looked tired and uneasy.

"Good morning," Streampaw greeted. She selected a small shrew from the pathetic-looking pile and settled down in a dry spot beside her sisters. "Nightpaw, are you going out on your first training session with Oakfoot today?"

Nightpaw shook her head. "He was on the moonhigh patrol last night, so I think he's going to be sleeping most of the day."

"Shadepaw!" Robinwing was calling from the thorn tunnel. "Come on!"

Shadepaw quickly finished her half of the pigeon and waved her tail to her sisters. "Bye, guys! See you later!" She scampered across the clearing after her mentor.

"Streampaw, can I ask you something?" Nightpaw suddenly meowed. Streampaw nodded. "What is it?"

Nightpaw dawdled with the bone of the pigeon she'd just finished. "Um, you know how Hawkpaw was the one that came up to Dustclaw and told him about the ShadowClan scent?"

Streampaw held her breath. Did Nightpaw think the same thing she did?

"Well, I know this is crazy, but…" Nightpaw inhaled deeply. "Do you think he did it on purpose?"

"Yes!" Streampaw whispered. "Yes, I do! Do you know why? I had a dream, Nightpaw, before the accident happened. In the dream, all the fox traps were near the ShadowClan border and they look like they'd been dragged there. And I smelled his scent. I think it was a foreshadowing, just like your dream about Fogpaw was."

Nightpaw nodded. "And do you think he did it because he didn't want me to be a warrior before him?"

"Yes." Streampaw sighed. "It all makes sense, but…I just can't believe he would do that! I can't believe he would be able to think of that whole scheme himself!"

"I think we should tell Smokestar," Nightpaw mewed. "We've got a real crime on our paws!"

Streampaw gasped. "No, we can't! Imagine what Smokestar would do to him! And who would believe us? We're just a couple of apprentices."

"You're the medicine cat apprentice," Nightpaw reminded her. "You're meant to get prophetic dreams. And we _have_ to tell. What if he hurts someone else? What if he _kills_ someone?"

"He won't!" Streampaw rose to her paws. "He wouldn't! That's our brother you're talking about! We can't just throw him to the wolves. He's done so much for us."

Nightpaw sighed. "Fine. I won't tell. But if anything else happens…"

"We'll tell Smokestar," Streampaw finished. "I promise."

xxx

"Streampaw!"

She glanced up from her herb piles to see Berrywhisker standing there, a concerned expression spread across her face. "Could you come look at Owlkit? Quailfeather says he's been acting strange lately."

"Sure." Streampaw gathered a couple of herbs and followed the pregnant queen into the nursery. Quailfeather was lying in her nest, her body wrapped around the squirming form of Owlkit. Streampaw placed her herbs on the ground and padded up to them. "Quailfeather, what's wrong?"

"I don't know," Quailfeather mewed, sounding distressed. "He's been tired and coughing, and he won't eat anything!"

Streampaw sniffed at him and did a quick check-up of his heart. When she listened to his lungs, they sounded a bit congested. His paw pads also felt a bit warm. Streampaw felt anxiety creep over her pelt. This didn't sound good at all. "Let me fetch Pebblefur just to make sure everything is all right." She dashed into the elders' den, where her mentor was giving Sharpclaw a mixture of juniper berries and ragwort for his aching joints.

"Pebblefur, I think there might be something wrong with Owlkit," Streampaw mewed urgently. "His lungs sound very congested and he seems feverish."

The pair hurried back into the nursery. Pebblefur thoroughly checked over the small kit, and when he was finished, he frowned. "I'm sorry to say this, Quailfeather, but he may have whitecough."

Streampaw felt her belly drop; that's exactly what she thought it was.

"Would you mind if we kept him in the medicine den until he got better?" Pebblefur asked. "We need to keep him away from his brother and the other kits."

Quailfeather shook her head. "Please, do."

Pebblefur carefully lifted Owlkit out of the nest and carried him to the medicine den, Streampaw at his heels. Once in the den, Pebblefur laid the kit gently in a nest used for sick or injured patients.

"Streampaw, get me some borage leaves for his fever, please," Pebblefur instructed. Streampaw quickly fetched a few of the hairy leaves and handed them to Pebblefur, who chewed them up and fed the pulp to Owlkit. He squealed in protest, but swallowed it.

"Now I need some catmint," Pebblefur ordered. Streampaw frowned as she gazed over the piles of herbs. "We don't have any, Pebblefur."

Pebblefur spun around. "No catmint?" He sniffed at the stacks of herbs. "You're right. Well, we'll just use chickweed instead. We'll have to go hunting for some later." He quickly fed Owlkit the chickweed and turned to Streampaw. "Normally I would go search for some myself and leave you here, but you're not very experienced yet. I don't want to leave you alone with a kit who has whitecough."

"I'll ask a warrior to go with me," Streampaw told him. "Where's the best place to find catmint?"

Pebblefur thought a moment. "I'm not sure you'll be able to find much, but our best bet is probably right next to the abandoned Twoleg nest. The den might have protected some catmint from the wind and snow."

Streampaw nodded and hurried into the clearing, scanning the camp for a warrior to accompany her. Then she paused. She was heading to the abandoned Twoleg nest, where Riddle and Mist lived. If she had another cat with her, and that cat saw Riddle and Mist, they would surely be chased out of the territory.

Streampaw veered to the right, through the dirtplace, and out into the forest. It was bitterly cold and Streampaw had to fluff her pelt out to keep warm. She prayed to StarClan that no cat saw her. Staying low to the ground, she raced around the stone hollow and towards the abandoned Twoleg nest.

"Riddle?" she called out in a hushed whisper. Streampaw crept up to the shabby den, tasting the air for his scent. "Mist?"

"Streampaw?" A silver head poked out from behind the den. "Is that you?"

Overjoyed, Streampaw raced around to the backside of the den. "Riddle! Are you all right?"

Riddle nuzzled her. "I was worried that something had happened to you, Streampaw."

Streampaw was taken aback by his affectionate gesture. "I'm fine. I was punished, that's all, and I couldn't leave the camp alone. I still can't. I'm not supposed to be out here by myself."

Riddle motioned to a dead mouse lying in his nest. "Look, I caught that using the technique you showed me."

"Great!" Streampaw purred. "I knew you could do it. Say, where's Mist?"

"She was out finding some more moss for her nest," Riddle replied. "How is your Clan? Is everything going well?"

Streampaw nodded. "Yes. Well, sort of. We had an apprentice murdered over on the opposite side of the territory. We think it was the doing of those rogues."

"That is horrible." Riddle shuddered. "I wish Mist and I were safe out here."

Streampaw suddenly had an idea. "Hey, I know how you could cover your scent. I'll come by tonight and bring you something, okay? But for now I've got to go."

"Goodbye, Streampaw." Riddle touched her ear with his nose. "Take care."

"See you tonight." Streampaw waved with her tail and bounded away in search of catmint.

xxx

Streampaw couldn't sleep. It wasn't because she was worried about Owlkit's health, for she ended up not being able to find any catmint anywhere. It wasn't because she was worried about getting caught sneaking out of the camp. She was excited to see Riddle again. Being with him made her beyond happy.

When she couldn't take the anticipation any longer, Streampaw grabbed the tansy that she'd hidden under her nest and crept out of the apprentices' den. The moonlight outlined the figure of Flowerpetal, who was sitting at the camp entrance keeping guard. She skirted the apprentices' den and made her way to the dirtplace tunnel.

Movement from the corner of her eye made her heart leap. She crouched in the snow, inching her way into the shadows. Someone was making dirt—Flamefeather. Had he seen her? She tensed as he padded past her back into the camp.

When Streampaw was well into the forest, she could finally breathe. She bounded joyfully through the snow, feeling giddy like a kit about to be made an apprentice, until she reached the abandoned Twoleg nest.

"Riddle!" Streampaw called. He appeared from behind the den. "Hello, Streampaw! What have you got in your jaws there?"

"This is tansy," Streampaw explained. "It's a great herb for coughing, but it's also very fragrant. Can you smell it?" She held the yellow flowers up to Riddle's nose. He sniffed at it and raised his eyebrows. "It is very strongly scented. Is this what we can use to cover our scent?"

Streampaw nodded. "The snow is already covering most of it, but once it melts, your scents will be out in the open. Rub this on yourselves before going somewhere and you'll be golden."

"Thank you, Streampaw. You say this is also good for cough?" Riddle sniffed at the herb again. "Is this something that can be eaten?"

"Yes. You chew up the leaves." Streampaw widened her eyes. She was already helping Riddle learn how to hunt and fight. What if they were to become injured or sick? It's not like they had a medicine cat to go to when they had a bellyache or sore paw pad. "I bet I could help you find herbs, too!"

Riddle's eyes sparkled. "Really? That would be wonderful! This season has been especially harsh, and I fear that Mist may fall ill."

"Well, I _am_ a medicine cat," Streampaw giggled. "I'll be happy to help you with that, too. Look, my sister taught me this battle move the other day. Let me show you."

xxx

**Okay, another really boring chapter. But I couldn't just forget about Riddle! He's a pretty important character. (: I wanted to kind of get in a little bit of Riddle x Stream fluff, too. **


	19. Chapter Eighteen

**OMG. Thank you to my 2 kind reviewers from the last chapter! It means a ton to me, seriously. (:**

**KND Operative Numbuh 227: Thank you! :D I'll definitely check out your fanfic!**

**Ivyfrost-from-Shadowclan: Thanks! (: Wellll Hawkpaw is a very interesting cat and he's one of the main-est characters in the fanfic, so you're in luck! Also, thanks for following this fanfic! c:**

**Guys, thanks so much! :D Sorry this chapter took so long to get up, but here it is!**

xxx

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

"_I'm impressed," Oakfoot purred. "You seem_ to be ahead for having only been an apprentice for about a moon."

Nightpaw twitched her ears from the praise; it was definitely a change of pace hearing compliments from her mentor rather than reprimands and corrections. "Thank you."

Oakfoot nodded to her. "All right, now I'm going to assess your hunting skills to see where Dustclaw left off."

Nightpaw gulped; Dustclaw never really went over very many hunting techniques. All he showed her was the basic hunter's crouch and stalk.

"Let's head into the forest and see if we can find any prey," he mewed, beckoning his apprentice with his long tabby tail. Nightpaw bounded after him, galloping awkwardly through the snow. Oakfoot turned, watching her clomp after him, and twitched his whiskers in amusement. Nightpaw flattened her ears and ducked her head. _It's not fair! His legs are so much longer than mine._

Oakfoot led her to the Ancient Oak, where the snow appeared to dissipate as they neared the lakeshore. "This seems to be a pretty good spot," he commented as Nightpaw struggled out of the snow after him. "See if you can scent any prey."

Nightpaw shook the snow free from her black pelt and tasted the air. There was the smell of snow, the lake, ThunderClan…any prey scents? She shook her head. "I can't smell any."

Oakfoot sniffed for a moment. "You're right. Let's head further into the territory, but stay along the lake. The snow is lighter here, so prey is more likely to be here than, say, in the middle of the forest."

The pair continued travelling along the lakeshore. Nightpaw enjoyed the peacefulness of the lake, how it gently lapped at the icy pebbles on the shore. She loved how, even in the coldest, dreariest leaf-bare, it remained unfrozen, a symbol of hope and promise for new-leaf to arrive eventually.

Nightpaw suddenly halted, widening her eyes and scanning the forest. _I smell…water vole._ She dropped into a hunter's crouch, tasting the air until she found the source of the scent. It was scrambling about the base of a tree, collecting nuts. Grateful that she was downwind, she crept towards the tree, circling it until she was just behind the vole. In one swipe of her claws and a bite to the neck, it was fresh-kill.

"Nice catch!" Oakfoot appeared from behind a clump of bracken; he had properly hidden there in order for Nightpaw to make her catch. "I love your carefulness and the way you thought that through. Rather than just leaping out for it, like many apprentices would do, you thought about the best way to ensure you caught that vole. Nice job, Nightpaw."

Nightpaw soaked up his praise, curling her tail in happiness. Is this what it felt like to have a normal mentor? Since the earth was nearly frozen and too hard to scrape up, Nightpaw covered her fresh-kill with some fronds of bracken.

"Let's hunt a little more," Oakfoot told her. "This spot seems to be a great one for prey right now."

Nightpaw scented the air, twitching her nose until she picked up the scent of prey._ Blackbird!_ She followed the scent, stalking towards a juniper bush, and peered through the thick green leaves. The dark bird was pecking along the frozen ground, oblivious to its fate.

Nightpaw skirted the bush, positioning herself behind the bird, and reached her forepaw between a few leaves.

A sudden scent filled her nose—the scent of crowfood, blood, and cats. She gasped, her fur bristling, and lifted her head. The blackbird heard her and took off into a tree.

"Nightpaw, what happened?" Oakfoot demanded, bounding over to her. "You had that blackbird."

Nightpaw didn't respond; fear was choking her to the point that she couldn't even think straight.

Oakfoot stepped in front of her. "Nightpaw? Are you okay?"

"Do you smell that?" she asked quietly, her voice quavering. "It's…it's the…"

Oakfoot parted his jaws slightly and bristled. "Rogues! But where is the scent coming from?" He sniffed at the juniper bush. "It's fresh, but not very strong."

"Does that mean they passed by here?" Nightpaw began to tremble as images of Fogpaw's mangled body entered her mind.

Oakfoot didn't reply. He passed her the water vole she'd just caught. "Let's head back to camp. Quietly, now." Allowing her to go first, the pair spun around and raced into the forest.

xxx

"Thank StarClan, you didn't see any!" Streampaw breathed. "You said it was a fresh but weak scent. What could that mean?"

Nightpaw shrugged. "Perhaps they'd just passed through there. But how did they not hear or smell us?" She glanced up, watching as a patrol of senior warriors, including Brackenclaw and Oakfoot, headed out of the camp to investigate. "I hope everything is okay."

"I hope they run into those mangepelts," Blazepaw chimed in. "They deserve to have their pelts hung in the tree branches for what they did to Fogpaw!"

"What are we going to do about these rogues?" Stormpaw wondered aloud, twitching his ears as he thought. "No cat has ever actually run into them except Fogpaw, and…" His voice trailed off. Nightpaw touched his flank with her tail-tip, knowing what he meant and how hard it was for him to talk about it. "I know. I wonder if they're giving any of the other Clans as much trouble."

"I hope StarClan tells me something tomorrow night," Streampaw sighed. "Tomorrow is the half-moon. It's my very first meeting with all the medicine cats."

"Are you nervous?" Nightpaw asked.

Streampaw nodded. "Yes, very. I hope they like me. I hope there are other apprentices, too, and not just me."

Nightpaw touched her sister's ear with her muzzle. "I'm sure they'll love you. You'll have a great time."

Streampaw suddenly jolted. "Who will stay here with Owlkit while we're gone? What if Pebblefur makes me go alone?" She leapt to her paws. "I'm going to go talk to him." She turned and hurried into the medicine den, leaving Nightpaw and Stormpaw alone together.

"Want to share some fresh-kill?" Stormpaw suggested. Nightpaw shook her head. "No, thank you. I'm not hungry."

Nightpaw smelled the patrol before she saw them emerging from the thorn tunnel. She pricked her ears and flared her nostrils, searching for the smell of blood or rogues. To her relief, as she scanned the patrol of cats, none of them looked harmed—just confused.

Smokestar rose from his spot beneath the Highledge. "What did you find?"

"Nothing," Splashfur reported. "We could smell the rogues, but none of the scents were fresher than another."

Nightpaw felt the fur on her neck prickle; did that mean that they _hadn't_ passed through there?

Brackenclaw nodded. "The strongest scent we could pick up was along the lakeshore."

"All right," Smokestar mewed, "thank you." He turned and bounded across the clearing, leaping onto the Highledge. "Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey meet beneath the Highledge for a Clan meeting!"

He waited until the whole of ThunderClan had gathered beneath him. Nightpaw and Stormpaw found a place in the back among the other apprentices.

"Cats of ThunderClan, the rogues have been scented again," Smokestar announced, "this time near the lake. I do not want any patrols there, border or hunting. No cat is to go into the territory alone, not even warriors. Apprentices must have a warrior with them. If you smell even the faintest scent of rogue, come straight back to camp and report it to me."

The crowd broke into anxious chatter. Nightpaw glanced around and noticed that Hawkpaw wasn't in the crowd, but Brackenclaw was. She turned to Shadepaw. "Do you know where Hawkpaw is?"

Shadepaw shook her head. "I thought he was out training, but Brackenclaw is here in camp."

Nightpaw felt fear crawl into her belly. _The last time we couldn't find Hawkpaw, Dustclaw got his leg trapped in a fox trap. And when we were kits, when Grasswave died, we couldn't find him then either._ She turned and pushed her way out of the crowd, tasting the air for his scent.

Stormpaw padded up beside her. "What's wrong?"

"Have you seen Hawkpaw recently?" Nightpaw asked him. He nodded and motioned to the apprentices' den with his tail. "He's asleep in there."

Nightpaw darted over to the den, poking her head through the entrance. Sure enough, Hawkpaw was curled in his nest, asleep, his limbs twitching as though he were dreaming. She pulled her head out and turned to Stormpaw. "Thank you. I was worried; I noticed that he wasn't here, but that his mentor was."

Stormpaw nodded. "It's strange, whenever he's not out training or hunting, he's usually here sleeping. All the time. I rarely ever see him awake."

"That is strange," Nightpaw agreed. "Maybe he just works very hard during the day and gets tired."

But Nightpaw knew that that was most likely not the case.

xxx

Yowling, shrieking, hissing and spitting.

Nightpaw squeezed her eyes shut, praying that she would wake up soon. She knew she was dreaming—or rather, having a nightmare. Although she'd been having the same one almost every night since she was a kit, each nightmare caused fear and panic to race up her spine.

The icy ground beneath her paws began to crack, and suddenly she felt herself falling.

Nightpaw never hit the ground, but before she knew it, she opened her eyes to see the lake. She was sitting on the pebbly shore, clumps of reeds and cattails on either side of her. The lake was quiet and still, barely even looking like water. Nightpaw sighed, relaxing a bit. _Finally, a normal, peaceful dream…_She tilted her head back and gazed up at the sky.

With a jolt, Nightpaw noticed that the sky was empty. No moon, no stars. It was just a sheet of black. Was this a sign?

She rose to her paws, padding away from the lake, and felt her belly lurch as she smelled an all-too-familiar scent—rogues.

_StarClan, are you leaving us? Are these rogues taking over the forest?_

Xxx

**Ooo, what do you think that dream meant? I know, ANOTHER boring chapter, but the next one will be much more interesting, and much longer, I think. Streampaw is going to the half-moon meeting! :D Don't forget to review, and have a great day!**


	20. Chapter Nineteen

**Here's a shout-out to Central Dakota and Nayeli Kigaliss for following this fanfic! Thanks so much, I really appreciate it! (: **

**Nayeli Kigaliss: Thank you so much! Yeah, me too…the challenges of being a writer…(:**

**YAY this chapter is gonna be much more interesting than the last ones! I'm introducing the OHMAIGAWD MYSTERIOUS PROPHECY in this one. I wasn't planning on having a prophecy, but then I was like, what good is StarClan in this whole situation if they don't give you a prophecy, ya know? I don't think it's going to be super prominent in this fanfic, but you never know. Okay, on to chapter 19! **

xxx

CHAPTER NINETEEN

"_Are you sure?" _

_Streampaw felt guilty_ leaving her mentor in camp with Owlkit, who wasn't getting any better. Pebblefur nodded. "Of course. You can't miss your first half-moon meeting!" He paused, thinking. "And this is the perfect time to teach you about travelling herbs."

Pebblefur left Owlkit's side and headed to the stacks of herbs. "The travelling herb mixture consists of burnet, sorrel, chamomile, and daisy leaf." He picked out a leaf from each pile as he spoke its name.

Streampaw sniffed at them and lapped them into her mouth. The bitter juices seeped onto her tongue and she nearly spit them out. "Yuck! These taste terrible."

"Have a lick of honeycomb, for taste." Pebblefur motioned to the large supply of honeycomb with his muzzle. Streampaw gladly obeyed, sighing in relief as the sweet taste filled her mouth and disguised the bitter herbs. She sat back on her haunches. "So remind me again what to do, please."

Pebblefur nodded. "You know where the Moonpool is, correct?"

"Correct."

"Okay, unless you're the first one there, the medicine cats and their apprentices should all be waiting at the base of the slope. When every cat is there, you'll go up to the Moonpool, lay down, and drink a bit of the water. Then StarClan will send you a dream. You cannot discuss your dream with any cat, understand?"

"Yes." Streampaw dipped her head. "Thank you."

Pebblefur glanced out of the den. "It's probably time you head out." He followed Streampaw into the clearing. "Good luck."

"Should a warrior come with me?" she fretted, remembering what Smokestar had told the Clan the previous day about the rogues.

Pebblefur thought a moment. "Yes, I think that would be a good idea. But on the way back, you'll be travelling with Clovergaze as she goes back to ShadowClan territory."

Streampaw dipped her head to her mentor and scanned the clearing. _Who should I ask?_

"Streampaw!"

A voice calling her name made her glance around. Smokestar was padding up to her, a concerned expression upon his face. Streampaw dipped her head to her father. "Hi, Smokestar."

"Are you about to leave for the half-moon meeting?" he asked her. "I want a senior warrior to accompany you." He lifted his head. "Brackenclaw?"

The golden-brown deputy glanced up from sharing a starling with Quailfeather and hurried over to them. "Yes, Smokestar?"

"Would you mind going with Streampaw to the half-moon meeting?" he asked. "You'd only have to take her there, not bring her back."

Brackenclaw shook his head. "Not at all, Smokestar. I'd be honored to accompany her."

Streampaw was astonished that the Clan deputy was going to be going with her, but she dipped her head in respect. "Thank you. You can finish eating first, though!"

"No, it's okay." Brackenclaw arched his back in a stretch, his muscles rippling underneath his tabby pelt. "It'll still be there when I get back, I'm sure." He twitched his whiskers. "Are you ready?"

"Yes." Streampaw followed him up the thorn tunnel and into the forest. The setting sun cast an orange light over the forest, tinging the snow gold. She wondered if she would be the first one there, and hoped not.

The pair made their way past the training hollow and along the WindClan stream, which was completely frozen over. Streampaw shivered, imagining what if would feel like to fall under the ice.

As they made their way out of the trees, the path that started at the base of the slope came into view, along with a few cats sitting near it.

Streampaw thanked Brackenclaw and raced over to the cats. She immediately recognized Duskshadow and Seedfur from WindClan, but there was a ginger-and-white-patched she-cat whom she'd never met before.

"Greetings, Streampaw," Seedfur mewed, dipping his head. "Is Pebblefur tending to a sick cat as well?"

Streampaw nodded. "Hi, Seedfur. Yes, we have a sick kit." She dipped her head to Duskshadow in greeting. The dark tortoiseshell smiled at her. "Are you ready for your first half-moon meeting?"

"I'm a bit nervous," Streampaw admitted to the kind old she-cat. Duskshadow shook her head. "Don't be, young one. It'll be wonderful, you'll see. This is Petalpaw's first meeting, too."

Streampaw glanced at the ginger-and-white she-cat, who smiled shyly at her. "Nice to meet you," she mewed softly.

"You, too," Streampaw replied, feeling relieved that she wasn't alone in this.

"Oh, there's Rushingstream," Seedfur announced. Streampaw turned to see the blue-gray she-cat leaping gracefully across the WindClan stream. She hurried up to the group of medicine cats. "I'm sorry I'm a bit late." She turned to Petalpaw, smiling. "Who is this? A new apprentice?"

Duskshadow nodded. "This is Clovergaze's apprentice, Petalpaw. Both Clovergaze and Pebblefur are at camp tending to sick cats."

Rushingstream shivered. "I know how that feels. RiverClan is struggling with a bit of a kittencough outbreak, but fortunately my last patient just recovered a few days ago."

"We should go," Duskshadow mewed, "the sun has set." She turned and began heading up the sloped path. Streampaw took up the rear beside Petalpaw, admiring the paw prints dimpled into the stone. She remembered the first time she'd come there, to get her apprentice name. The paw prints from cats that lived long ago had astonished and interested her.

"How long have you been an apprentice?" Petalpaw's quiet voice was barely audible over the sound of the wind; they were definitely near WindClan territory.

Streampaw was pleased that she'd spoken to her. "About a moon. Are you a new apprentice? I didn't see you at the Gathering."

Petalpaw nodded. "That's because I just earned my apprentice name a quarter moon ago."

"Do you have any littermates?" Streampaw asked her, just to make casual conversation.

"Yes, a brother named Rabbitpaw," Petalpaw answered. "What about you?"

"I have two sisters, Nightpaw and Shadepaw, and a brother named Hawkpaw." Streampaw thought a moment. "I also had a brother named Sagekit, but he died when he was young. I don't remember him much."

"Shh!" Duskshadow hushed the two apprentices. "This is a sacred place. You need to respect our ancestors."

Streampaw silenced herself and widened her eyes as they approached the top of the slope. The light of the half-moon illuminated the edges of the steep cliff from which water flowed freely into the Moonpool. It was such a serene, holy place, and Streampaw felt as though the cats of StarClan were already there with her.

The group of medicine cats separated, each cat finding a place at the edge of the pool. Streampaw settled down near the cliff and watched as the medicine cats took a few drinks from the pool. Within heartbeats they were asleep. Streampaw lapped at the cool, crystalline water and felt her eyes close.

A cool breeze ruffled her fur and she opened her eyes. Lush green hills surrounded her and the sun was shining warmly overhead. The smell of cats was around her, and although it was an unfamiliar scent, it was comforting to Streampaw. She rose to her paws and climbed a hill, gazing over the fields. Cats were milling about, hunting or lying lazily in the sun. It was a breathtaking sight, so happy and peaceful.

"Streampaw!" A voice calling her name made her jump. She turned to see a dark gray tom bounding over to her. His dark blue eyes sparkled with happiness and his fur glittered with stars.

"Fogpaw?" Streampaw gasped. "It's so good to see you!"

He waved his tail as he raced away after a group of apprentices. "You, too!"

"Streampaw, remember me?" A small voice mewled not too far behind her. Streampaw turned, watching as a small group of kits darted past her. The one who had called her name was a small pale gray tom. He grinned at her.

"Sagekit!" Streampaw felt overwhelming love for her kit brother. "Of course, I remember you!"

"Hello, Streampaw."

Streampaw started, jerking her head to the side. A light tabby she-cat was sitting next to her, gazing over the hills with a peaceful expression.

Streampaw backed away. "Who are you?"

"Don't be afraid, little one," the she-cat mewed. "My name is Leafpool. You're in StarClan."

"Leafpool?" Streampaw breathed. "You…you're the one that found the Moonpool!"

Leafpool chuckled. "That's right."

Streampaw gazed around. "This isn't where I came the first time I visited the Moonpool." She remembered what it was like for her when she was first made an apprentice. She was in a dark, damp, foul-smelling place and all she could hear was the sound of cats shrieking and yowling, very similar to her typical dreams. However in this dream the roof had been dripping, she remembered very clearly. When she'd come to a fork in the tunnels, she'd awoken.

"I know. That dream wasn't actually supposed to happen." Leafpool shook her head. "StarClan was intercepted by something."

"Intercepted?" Streampaw echoed. "How can that be? I thought StarClan was the most powerful thing to exist."

Leafpool sighed. "We can't talk about that right now. Listen, I've got something important to tell you. I need you to think about it, okay? _Among you are three who do not belong. When the sharpest claws unsheathe once again, the bird will betray, the darkness will calm, and the waters will heal."_

"What do you mean?" Streampaw asked, her voice quavering. "Is that a prophecy?"

"Yes, but I can't help you decipher it. That's your job."

"Am I supposed to pass it on to Pebblefur?"

"No. You mustn't tell any cat this, understand?"

Streampaw nodded; if it was a prophecy, something terrible must be going to happen. Why was she receiving this? She wasn't even a full medicine cat! "But how am I supposed to figure it out?"

"A series of events will unfold before you, Streampaw," Leafpool explained. "You must use your own wisdom to understand. We're counting on you."

The weight of StarClan was now on her shoulders? Streampaw's belly churned.

"There's another thing I must show you," Leafpool continued. "This was actually meant for someone else, but something is blocking their dreams." She sighed. We think it's the Place of No Stars."

"Who is it for?" Streampaw asked as Leafpool led her away. The StarClan cat shook her head. "I cannot tell you that. Come, lay down here and go to sleep."

Streampaw curled up in the warm grass, but didn't close her eyes. "Is my StarClan visit over?"

Leafpool nodded. "Remember what I told you, and remember what I'm about to show you. Now, close your eyes, little one."

Streampaw obeyed and was immediately plunged into another dream. She leapt to her paws and glanced around. Where was she? She could hear the sound of water trickling over pebbles, and the scent of RiverClan hung in the air. _Am I in RiverClan territory?_

The moon lit her path, full and round like a smooth white stone. Streampaw suddenly found herself in front of the log that connected the mainland to the island. _The Gathering island…_She crossed the tree trunk and stepped onto the island, glancing around. She couldn't see anything; the trees had covered the full moon completely, leaving her in darkness. Streampaw parted her jaws slightly, finding that although she was alone, she could smell all four Clans as though she were really at a Gathering.

_Is something going to happen at the next Gathering?_ Streampaw took another step and jumped when she heard rustling in the trees nearby. Her eyes flickered to the spot where the noise came from. A pair of yellow eyes gleamed back at her, looking like two fireflies in the darkness. She froze as a scent hit her nose—rogue scent.

A yowl split the silence.

Streampaw jolted awake and leapt to her paws, panting. She was back at the Moonpool, and the other medicine cats were all awake. Rushingstream glanced at her. "Are you all right, Streampaw?"

Streampaw nodded, catching her breath. "S-sorry." She had been the last one to wake.

The sky was brightening, but the sun hadn't yet risen.

"Come," Duskshadow whispered, "it's time to head back now. Remember to keep your dreams to yourselves." She led the medicine cats away from the Moonpool.

Streampaw took up the rear again, padding alone, her mind reeling with what she'd just experienced. _I can't believe Leafpool gave me a prophecy—_me,_ of all cats!_

When they reached the base of the slope, Duskshadow dipped her head to the two apprentices. "Have a safe journey home."

"You, too," Streampaw replied.

Seedfur waved his tail. "See you at the next Gathering!" The three cats headed in the opposite direction toward WindClan territory.

"Guess it's just you and me now," Petalpaw mewed. Streampaw nodded. "Let's head back. It's cold." She fluffed out her gray pelt in an attempt to stay warm. Petalpaw began trekking downstream, towards the lake.

"Wait!" Streampaw called to her. Petalpaw turned. "What's wrong?"

Streampaw remembered what had happened the previous day: rogues were scented by the lake! She wanted to stay as far away from the lake as possible. "Let's head up this way, okay?"

Petalpaw tilted her head. "Why?"

"There have been strange scents coming from the lake," Streampaw explained. "Can we head around the ThunderClan camp instead?"

"Sure." Petalpaw turned and began following Streampaw away from the Moonpool. The warm scent of ThunderClan lifted her spirits as they travelled.

"You can head back to camp now, if you want," Petalpaw meowed. "I can go by myself."

Streampaw shook her head. "No, I'll take you to the border, just to be safe." _It's not like we can defend ourselves if any cat attacks._

When the pair approached the Thunderpath, Streampaw padded out onto it. She knew that that path was abandoned, but Petalpaw remained in the bushes.

Streampaw turned. "Petalpaw, it's okay. This path isn't used anymore."

"Clovergaze always taught me to look, listen, and scent before crossing any Thunderpath," Petalpaw mewed in a trembling voice, "even when it looks abandoned."

Streampaw twitched her whiskers. "That's right, but neither a monster nor a Twoleg has been on this path since we've lived here!"

Petalpaw stepped cautiously onto the path. "I guess it's okay, then…"

When Streampaw reached the other side of the path, a familiar scent mixed with blood reached her senses. _Is that…?_ She followed the scent, ignoring Petalpaw, who was calling her name, up to a clump of brambles. In between the branches, she could just barely make out a silver-and-black pelt underneath it. "Riddle!"

"I-I am sorry, Streampaw!" he gasped. "I am stuck!"

Streampaw sniffed at him, sticking her nose between a few brambles. He smelled of blood; he was hurt somewhere.

Petalpaw appeared behind her. "Is that a Clanmate of yours?"

"Petalpaw, I need you to find me some cobweb, please," Streampaw instructed. "If you find any marigold, that would be great too."

Petalpaw turned tail and disappeared into the bushes.

"Okay, Riddle, I'm going to try to get you out." Streampaw grabbed a branch with her teeth and jerked it to the side. "Where are you bleeding?"

"My right forepaw," he responded, attempting in vain to push aside another bramble.

Streampaw grabbed another branch in her jaws, but immediately spit it back out when it jabbed her in the tongue. She stepped back, gazing around in desperation for anything to help her. A long stick caught her attention, and she raced over to it and ran a paw across it. It was smooth and sturdy. She picked it up and began to push the branches aside using the stick.

"Now, can you step through here?" Streampaw asked. Riddle rose to his paws, his right forepaw dangling by his belly, and ducked through the hole that she'd made.

"I've got some cobweb and marigold!" Petalpaw announced as she appeared from the bushes. Streampaw grabbed the marigold leaves and chewed them into a pulp as she inspected Riddle's forepaw. There was some bleeding on his paw pad and a long gash on the side of his arm. Other than some minor cuts on his flank, he was all right.

Streampaw quickly spread the poultice on his scratches, wishing she had some dock leaves for the pain in his pad pads, and covered them with a thin layer of cobweb. "There."

"Thank you, Streampaw," Riddle mewed. "I cannot thank you enough. Thank you, too, kind she-cat." He nodded to Petalpaw. "Are you a ThunderClan cat as well?"

Streampaw gave him a silencing glare. "Petalpaw is the ShadowClan medicine cat apprentice."

Petalpaw nodded, looking very confused. "Is this cat a loner?"

Streampaw didn't answer her question. "Please, Petalpaw. Don't tell any cat. I found him, and he seemed harmless, so I…"

"You didn't tell any cat because you didn't want them to chase him away." Petalpaw smiled. "Don't worry, Streampaw. Your secret is safe with me."

xxx

**Yay, a SUPER DUPER long chapter! I had to squeeze all dat shiz in there! I LOVE PETALPAW! She's soooo cute and sweet! I also love Riddle, who is equally cute and sweet. :3 Also, what do you guys think of the prophecy? I think it's pretty obvious, at least to the readers. Maybe not to Streampaw. Thanks for reading and don't forget to REVIEW! Have a great day! (:**


	21. Chapter Twenty

**WOW I had a sudden influx of reviews this time! :D I want to thank ifsmith for favorite-ing and following this fanfic, and also for all your helpful reviews!**

**Ifsmith: I've always wondered if cats could cry, but now I don't really care if they can't, cha feel? It's not that important to the story, in my opinion. It expresses more emotion. (': Also, during Willowbreeze's kitting, let's just say that Grasswave and Pebblepaw were a bit more concerned getting the loner kits to her belly before they starved WITHOUT her noticing than they were about knowing when the kits were coming. As for how they knew that the scent belonged to rogues, I think it's safe to say that it's easy to decipher between loners and rogues by the content of the smell, you know what I mean? Rogues probably smell more rotten and bloody. But then again, I'm not a cat so I probably don't know what I'm talking about. Oh yeah, new apprentices don't say the warrior code oath thing, do they? ^^; Oops…I guess they kind of adopted it. I also guess that Goosefeather and Grasswave are pretty similar, but to be honest, I had to look up what happened to Goosefeather just now because I didn't even remember! I didn't mean to make them so similar…sorry, Erin Hunter! Thank you SO much for reviewing! (:**

**Chrssi: Really? That IS super creepy…great minds think alike! (; Thanks for reviewing!**

**Nayeli Kigaliss: Yeah, well I tried. ^^ I think they'll figure it out pretty quickly. The prophecy isn't going to be hugely important anyways. Thanks!**

**Sorry for the huge long beginning notes! Here's the chapter!**

xxx

CHAPTER TWENTY

_Something jabbed Nightpaw in the side._ She cracked open her eyes and glanced around. Hawkpaw was twitching in his sleep, moving his limbs as though he were running. _Great StarClan, it's the middle of the night!_ She thought gruffly as she inched away from him and tucked her nose under her paw.

Immediately she was whisked away into her nightmares.

Nightpaw glanced around, feeling her pelt prickle with unease. _Where am I?_ The sound of waves lapping over the pebbles calmed her. _I'm at the lake again._ She glanced up at the sky, remembering her last dream in which there were no stars or moon, and sighed in relief. The moon was about three-quarters of the way full, and the stars glittered like morning dew in the sunlight. Nightpaw purred, sitting down and curling her tail over her paws. _Now _this_ is a pleasant dream._

The surface of the lake began to ripple, looking like a sleek black pelt ruffling in the breeze. Nightpaw narrowed her eyes, trying to see beyond the darkness of the waters. What was disturbing it? It wasn't the wind; the air was completely still. Was it a fish? Perhaps a leaf landed on the surface?

Nightpaw yelped when a pair of yellow eyes blinked up at her from under the water. She reached out a forepaw and jabbed the water where the eyes were. Nothing. The lake was empty, and the glowing yellow eyes disappeared.

A gust of cool wind blasted Nightpaw, making her stumble backwards. She crouched, squinting, as an enormous light flashed in front of her. It was a cat, a glowing cat, hovering above the lake.

Nightpaw felt herself trembling. "Are…are you from StarClan?" Her voice was barely audible over the roaring wind. Something that she noticed, though, was that the surface of the lake was undisturbed. The trees were creaking and the reeds were swaying, but the lake was completely still.

"Yes, little one," the cat spoke. "I've come with a message for you. _Among you are three who do not belong. When the sharpest claws unsheathe once again, the bird will betray, the darkness will calm, and the waters will heal."_

Nightpaw's mind reeled. Was StarClan giving her a prophecy? She was just a warrior apprentice! "Why are you telling me this?"

The cat didn't answer her question. "There is something coming, something so powerful that not even the four Clans can match its might. It is willing to do anything to get what it wants, even kill." The cat parted the waters, revealing the lake bottom. Lying there in the muddy sand was a small unmoving kit.

Nightpaw felt horror creep into her throat. The thing that was coming was even willing to murder a kit? Toss it into the lake?

The cat began to fade. "Keep this in mind, Nightpaw, as you watch events unfold in front of you." Then it was gone, disappearing into the sheet of black.

Nightpaw gazed at the spot where the body of the small kit had been. Who would commit such an atrocity? She gagged as the scent of rogue engulfed her senses, and was plunged into darkness.

"Ouch! Nightpaw, get off me!"

The sound of someone hissing awoke her. She lifted her head groggily to see Hawkpaw glaring at her. Yawning, she rose to her paws and stretched. "Oh, sorry, Hawkpaw."

"I was having a great dream," Hawkpaw mumbled.

Nightpaw rolled her eyes. "Yeah, well, it's not like you've never woken me up with your kicking before."

Hawkpaw froze. "What do you mean, kicking?"

"Take last night, for example." Nightpaw swiped her tongue over her paw a few times. "You jabbed me in the side with your twitching limbs."

"Did I?"

"Yes. What _are_ you dreaming about?"

Hawkpaw growled. "I'm doing important stuff, okay?"

"Important stuff?" Nightpaw was now officially suspicious of her brother. "What kind of 'important stuff' can you accomplish while sleeping?"

"None of your business!" Hawkpaw curled into a tight ball. "I'm going back to sleep."

Grunting in frustration, Nightpaw pushed her way out of the apprentices' den. It was already dawn and cats were milling about the clearing. Oakfoot was sharing a sparrow with his sister Larchwing, and waved his tail when he saw Nightpaw emerge from her den. "Grab something to eat, because we're doing some joint battle training today with Hawkpaw and Shadepaw!"

Nightpaw glanced around for someone to share her fresh-kill with. Shadepaw was already heading into the apprentices' den with a mouse, probably to share with Hawkpaw. Streampaw was still asleep, having attended the half-moon meeting the previous night. Emberpaw and Blazepaw were sharing a scrawny rabbit near the warriors' den.

"Nightpaw!"

She turned to see Stormpaw bounding over to her, and smiled at him. "What to share some fresh-kill with me?"

Stormpaw nodded. "That sounds great! What do you want?"

Nightpaw shrugged as she padded over to the small fresh-kill pile. "There's not much of a selection." She grabbed the best-looking piece of prey, a vole, and headed to their usual spot out of the snow.

"Stormpaw, make sure that the elders have been fed before you eat!" Larchwing called to her apprentice. Stormpaw sighed and looked at Nightpaw. "Let's give this and another piece of prey to the elders first."

Nightpaw nodded, waiting as Stormpaw grabbed another piece, and headed into the elders' den. After delivering the prey, they grabbed a scrawny shrew from the pile and began to share it.

"You won't have to deal with that for much longer," Nightpaw assured him as she wolfed down her small portion.

Stormpaw nodded. "Larchwing said I haven't got much longer until my final assessment."

"That's so exciting!" Nightpaw purred, curling her tail in delight. She frowned when she noticed Stormpaw staring at his paws solemnly. "What is it?"

"It's just…" Stormpaw sighed. "Fogpaw should be getting ready to earn his warrior name, too."

Nightpaw's heart wrenched in sympathy for the tom. "It'll be okay. He's much happier up in StarClan, I bet. I wish Smokestar had given Fogpaw his warrior name as he went."

"Me, too." Stormpaw quickly finished eating. "Well, I've got battle training today with Blazepaw and Emberpaw. That ought to be interesting."

"Nightpaw!" Oakfoot was calling her from the entrance to the thorn tunnel. "We're about to leave! Could you fetch Hawkpaw and Shadepaw, please?"

Nightpaw rose to her paws. "I'll see you later, Stormpaw!" She dashed into the apprentices' den, where Shadepaw and Hawkpaw were sharing tongues. "We're leaving for joint battle training now."

Shadepaw leapt to her paws. "Great! This is going to be fun!"

Nightpaw twitched her whiskers as she followed her eager sister to the thorn tunnel where Oakfoot, Brackenclaw, and Robinwing stood, Hawkpaw at her heels.

When they arrived at the training hollow, Oakfoot and Robinwing sat down in front of the apprentices while Brackenclaw explained to them what they were to be doing. "Today we're going to work on fighting in pairs. This can be a bit tricky, but it's important to think similarly when using this technique." He turned to the other two warriors. "I'm going to be the opponent, and you two will battle against me."

At first Nightpaw was alert, watching in awe as Oakfoot and Robinwing battled Brackenclaw perfectly in sync. It almost looked effortless as they pummeled the powerful deputy into the snow. But she shivered as a cold breeze carried the sound of a whisper to her ears. She glanced around; who was that? Both Hawkpaw and Shadepaw were on her left, and the whisper had been in her right ear. Were they playing a joke on her? No, they were both watching the mock fight intently, their eyes wide and ears directed forward.

Nightpaw tried to turn her attention back to the fight, but the whispers were growing louder. She twitched her ears. _It's just the wind. No cat is here with you._

"_Forgiveness is for the weak! Revenge is for the strong!" _the voices were chanting. They were growing louder, louder, like a yowling in her ear, louder than the loudest crack of thunder—

Nightpaw screeched and batted at her ears, crouching down and squeezing her eyes shut.

Oakfoot bounded over to her. "Nightpaw, what's wrong?"

The voices vanished. Nightpaw opened her eyes; Oakfoot was standing above her, his expression full of concern. Brackenclaw and Robinwing were looking on as well, while Hawkpaw and Shadepaw were doubled over laughing.

"Um…" Nightpaw stammered, "I-I think I had a bug in my ear, and…"

"Is it out now?" Oakfoot glanced into her ear. Nightpaw nodded and leapt to her paws. "Sorry for interrupting."

"What is _wrong_ with you?" Hawkpaw snickered. Shadepaw regained her breath from her fit of laughter. "You're such a mousebrain!"

Nightpaw tried to smile and brush it off, but she couldn't. Where were those voices coming from, and why had they chosen her?

xxx

On the way back to camp, Nightpaw noticed something strange going on with Hawkpaw. His fur was on end, his ice-blue eyes wide, and he was constantly glancing around. Every little sound made him jump.

"What's wrong with you?" Nightpaw whispered to him. He stared at a bush nearby. "Did you see that? There was a cat's tail…"

Nightpaw looked, but saw nothing. "I don't see anything—"

"It disappeared into the bush!" Hawkpaw veered to the left and leapt into the bush, hissing.

"Hawkpaw, get out of the bush!" Brackenclaw ordered. "Unless you're hunting, which I highly doubt, you need to stay with us."

Hawkpaw returned from the bush, his fur tangled with dry leaves, twigs, and snow, and sulked back to the group.

Inside the camp, Nightpaw spotted Streampaw sitting alone near the apprentices' den, grooming herself. She padded over to her and flopped down, sighing.

"Hey, Nightpaw," Streampaw greeted dully. "Is something wrong?"

Nightpaw knew she could confide in her sister. "The strangest thing happened to me today during training. This may sound crazy, but…I heard this whisper in my ear, but no cat was there. It kept getting louder and chanting the same thing over and over again. Something about revenge for the strong."

Streampaw raised her eyebrows. "Something strange happened to me, too." She glanced at her flank. "Today Pebblefur was giving me a lesson in his den. No cat was around. And then I suddenly smelled the rogue scent, and felt claws scratch my flank. But there was nothing there."

"Did you tell Pebblefur what happened?" Nightpaw asked. "He'd probably try to figure it out if you told him."

Streampaw shook her head. "I was nervous he would think I'm crazy. There's no mark on my flank, either." She sighed. "Do you remember when we were having the same dreams?"

Nightpaw nodded. "I still have them."

"Me, too. What do you think all this means, Nightpaw?"

"I…" Nightpaw was at a loss for words. She remembered her dream the previous night in which she'd received a prophecy. What if all this had to do with it? She didn't want to be special or part of a prophecy. She just wanted to live a normal life in ThunderClan! What if she had a special power, like the Great Three? She could only pray it wasn't true. "I don't know, Streampaw. I really don't know what this means."

But she did, and she couldn't deny it.

xxx

**OOO. Okay guys, I suddenly came up with an AWESOME idea. It's really intricate. It calls for a lot of detail work and looking at everything from every angle to make sure I don't mess up. If I use this idea, the books could get really…messy. Packed with a lot of stuff, you know what I mean? It might get confusing, and the last thing I want is for this story to be confusing. But the idea is so awesome. I needed an explanation for some aspect of this story: why are the rogues after the Clans, and also, why are they after Night, Stream, and Hawk? I had no idea what to use. Then it hit me, and it's bizarre to say the least. Basically, if I use this idea, I could either make it super amazing or it could crash and burn. **

**So my question for YOU guys is: what do you want to see? Would you rather have me use a very intricate, eventful plot that might just confuse the crap out of you? Or would you rather have me think of something else that might be less interesting but will be easy to understand and write about? I know as an author I really do have to take risks, so I'm leaning more towards, YES, use the idea. What do you guys think? Help me out here! Well anyways, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter and have a great day! (:**


	22. Chapter Twenty-One

**Hey all! Sorry for not posting another chapter yesterday. I was out with my friend all day. I was also a bit stuck on this chapter, because the next few chapters are gonna be eventfuuuulll (well, they ARE the last few chapters). Here is a shoutout to The Author in The TARDIS for favorite-ing and following this fanfic! THANKS A TON! :D**

**Numbuh 227: Thank you! (: Yeah I know, it's pretty obvious. But try to see it from Streampaw's point of view! She has no idea that she, along with Nightpaw and Hawkpaw, are any different than her Clanmates. (It's still fairly obvious, but whatever!)**

**Ifsmith: I guess that's true, but Fireheart also had a prophecy revolving around him and in my opinion, that's mainly why Bluestar made him deputy. And no, there's actually no relationship between Hawkpaw and Hawkfrost. I just liked the name. :3 What's wrong with forbidden love? I LOVE forbidden love. ^^ And whoever said it was love? Thanks for reviewing!**

**Author in the TARDIS: Me, too! It's just, the one I have in mind is almost too intricate. Like it's gonna be a lot of work to maintain. Thanks for reviewing, favorite-ing, and following! It means the world to me. :D**

**Nayeli Kigaliss: Okay, I'll keep that in mind as I make my decision. Thank you! c: **

**This chapter takes place about a week (a quarter-moon) after the last one!**

xxx

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

"_Okay, and what is this herb_ for?"

"That is marigold. It is used to prevent infections in wounds."

Streampaw purred. "That's right! You're catching on quickly."

"That is because you are a great teacher." Riddle curled his tail. "So these are the basic herbs, you say?"

"Yes." Streampaw scanned the row of herbs in front of her. "Feverfew, juniper berries, cobweb, poppy seeds, and marigold. There are tons and tons more, but these are just the ones that you might need the most."

Riddle nodded. "I cannot thank you enough, Streampaw. It is probably hard for you to spare these herbs for me in the middle of such a cold, harsh season."

"It's fine!" Streampaw pushed the herbs toward him. "These herbs are very abundant in the forest, even in leaf-bare."

"Oh, I almost forgot!" Riddle leapt to his paws and headed into his den, returning a few heartbeats later with some leafy herbs in his jaws and dropping them onto the ground. "I found these not too far outside your territory. I don't know if they will be of much help, but…"

Streampaw gasped as the mouthwatering scent hit her nose; it was catmint! She sniffed at the herbs; they were fairly dried up and there wasn't much of it, but it was definitely usable. "Riddle, this herb is catmint! It's basically the most needed herb during leaf-bare, but also the most difficult to find!"

"Really?" Riddle beamed. "What does it do?"

"It cures whitecough and greencough," Streampaw explained. "It's a dangerous illness that spreads throughout the camp almost every leaf-bare. Catmint is the best way to treat them. We actually have a sick little kit back at camp, and this catmint will definitely cure him in no time." She purred and licked him on the ear. "Thank you, Riddle!"

"I just thought it might be of use to you," Riddle mewed. "Actually, Mist was the one to find it."

Streampaw rose to her paws. "I'd best be getting back to camp. Pebblefur is going to be thrilled when I show him this!"

"Have a safe trip back." Riddle waved his tail. Streampaw grabbed the catmint, dipped her head to him, and bounded away. As she entered the camp, she noticed that a light snow had begun to fall. Streampaw veered to the right, heading into the medicine den.

"Pebblefur, look what I found!" she called, dropping the herbs in front of the medicine cat, who was trying to give Owlkit some lavender.

"Great StarClan, Streampaw!" Pebblefur sniffed at the leaves. "This is catmint! Where did you find it?"

Streampaw racketed her brain; she didn't know what to say without giving away Riddle's hiding spot. She also couldn't say that she'd found them too far off, because she wasn't supposed to be going out of the camp by herself. "Oh, I thought I smelled it when I was in the dirt place. I found it a little ways away. I grabbed all of it, though, so there's none left."

"This is wonderful! This will cure Owlkit in no time." Pebblefur grabbed a few of the leaves and held them out to the little golden-brown kit. "Owlkit, can you eat this?"

Owlkit sniffed it and, smelling its delicious aroma, lapped the leaves into his mouth and grinned. "Those are yummy!"

Pebblefur dropped the remaining catmint near the rest of his herbs. "We even have a few to spare. I hope we find more over there soon. That's a place I would never think to look for catmint."

"Me, neither." Streampaw wished she could tell him where the herbs were really found—outside ThunderClan territory.

Pebblefur grabbed a couple of herbs that Streampaw didn't recognize and padded over to her. "Well, now that Owlkit's asleep, let's have a lesson."

xxx

"Streampaw!"

She glanced up from her tiny shrew to see Nightpaw bounding over to her. Streampaw curled her tail. "Hi, Nightpaw!"

The black she-cat sat down beside her. "Hey, can we talk? It's really important."

"Sure." Streampaw nodded and followed her sister to a corner of the camp, wondering what was wrong.

Nightpaw took a deep breath. "The other night, I had a really strange dream. I was sitting in front of the lake, and a cat descended from the sky. I didn't know who it was; I couldn't even tell if it was a she-cat or a tom! But the cat gave me a prophecy."

Streampaw bristled; could it be the same prophecy she had received at the Moonpool? "Wh-what was it?"

"It went something like this: _Among you are three who do not belong. When the sharpest claws unsheathe once again, the bird will betray, the darkness will calm, and the waters will heal."_

The fur on Streampaw's neck prickled; would it be all right to tell her sister that she'd received the same prophecy? She wasn't allowed to discuss her dreams at the Moonpool with cats other than the medicine cat and leader. She decided that didn't care, for this was clearly important. "Nightpaw, I…I received this prophecy as well."

Nightpaw widened her eyes. "Do you think it involves us? I think we should tell Pebblefur."

"No, I can't." Streampaw shook her head. "I actually received the prophecy during my dream at the Moonpool. I'm not supposed to share any of that with any cat, but…"

"Why did you tell me, then?" Nightpaw bristled. "Aren't you breaking the medicine cat code?"

Streampaw thought a moment. "I guess so. The code says that dreams of a prophetic nature may be discussed among the medicine cat and Clan leader."

"Then why don't you tell him? This could be serious, Streampaw."

"Because…" Streampaw honestly didn't have a reason not to tell Pebblefur or Smokestar. "I don't know, Nightpaw! Let's wait until we get another dream, okay?"

Nightpaw sighed. "Fine. But…the prophecy. What is your take on it?"

"I haven't really thought about it, to be honest."

"I think I've got some of it figured out. 'The darkness' that 'will calm' must be ShadowClan, and 'the waters' that 'will heal' is RiverClan. What do you think?"

Streampaw nodded. "That actually makes a lot of sense. But what about 'the bird' that 'will betray'? Which Clan could that be?"

"I couldn't figure that one out," Nightpaw meowed. "But, after I realized that the prophecy was about those two Clans, the beginning of the prophecy got me thinking. 'Among you are three who do not belong'. What if StarClan is trying to tell us that…there's only supposed to be one Clan?"

Streampaw widened her eyes. "Why would they be telling us that? Only one Clan is…that's ridiculous!"

"Well, what do you think?" Nightpaw shook her head. "I can't decipher it any other way, Streampaw. It makes sense. Now we just have to figure out what 'the sharpest claws' and 'the bird' that 'will betray' are."

A yowl sounded at the entrance to the camp. Streampaw and Nightpaw raced into the clearing, watching as a patrol dashed through the thorn tunnel. Smokestar emerged from his den. "What's going on?"

"We found some prey bones near the lake," Splashfur, the leader of the patrol, panted. "They were covered in rogue scent!"

The cats in the clearing broke out in an anxious chatter. Smokestar silenced them with his tail. "Splashfur, take me to where you found these bones. Brackenclaw and Snowstorm, come with us, please. Robinwing, you're in charge of the camp until I return."

The four cats plunged back into the thorn tunnel, disappearing over the cliff of the hollow.

"These rogues are nothing but trouble!" Emberpaw growled, stepping up beside Streampaw. "What do they want with us? And how can we always smell them, but no cat has reported seeing them yet?"

Streampaw shook her head. "I don't know. But don't you remember what Ferntail said? Apparently, many seasons ago, the Clans did something very wrong to the rogues."

"If it happened so long ago, why are they still seeking revenge?" Emberpaw kneaded the snow with her claws. "It's not like _we_ did it!"

A thought hit Streampaw like a gust of wind: what if 'the sharpest claws' in the prophecy were actually the rogues?

xxx

"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey meet beneath the Highledge for a Clan meeting!"

Smokestar's call rang through the clearing. Streampaw emerged from the medicine den behind Pebblefur; what was going on? _Oh, he's going to tell us about the rogue scent._

Once the cats of ThunderClan had gathered, Smokestar began. "As you may or may not know, some prey bones were found near the lake, covered in rogue scent. We scoured the area, but there was no sign of rogues anywhere. The area is now secure, but like I said before: I do not want any patrols along the lake unless otherwise specified."

Smokestar glanced down into the crowd. "On a lighter note, we have two young cats who are far ready to become apprentices."

Streampaw grinned as Mallowkit and Minnowkit raced to the front of the crowd, both ready to burst with excitement.

"Minnowkit, from this moment until you earn your warrior name, you will be known as Minnowpaw," Smokestar mewed to the silver she-cat. "Flamefeather, you are ready for your first apprentice. Please pass everything you know onto this apprentice, and set her paws on the path to warriorhood."

Minnowpaw stretched her neck upward to touch noses with Flamefeather, who looked equally thrilled to be receiving his first apprentice, and followed him to sit at the edge of the crowd.

"Mallowkit, from this moment until you earn your warrior name, you will be known as Mallowpaw." Smokestar smiled down at the little gray tom. "Ripplewind, you are also ready for your first apprentice. I know you will teach everything you know to this apprentice, and set his paws on the path to warriorhood."

Ripplewind and Mallowpaw touched noses and sat down with the crowd.

"Minnowpaw! Mallowpaw!" the Clan began to shout. Streampaw cheered along with them, feeling glad that although they were experiencing difficulties with the rogues, ThunderClan was still strong.

She really wondered, though, if Nightpaw's interpretation of the prophecy was right. Could it be that StarClan only wanted one Clan in the forest?

xxx

**OMG Nightpaw is kickin' this prophecy's butt! Okay, now there are like a ton of apprentices, and it will actually stay that way for a while (hint, hint…) c; So the next few chapters are going to be much more interesting, I promise. Hope you enjoyed and have an awesome day!**


	23. Chapter Twenty-Two

**Hey guys, this chapter takes place another week after the last one did! Time for the Gathering! By the way, in case you didn't notice, I combined the prologue and the allegiances. I was actually breaking the Guidelines because the allegiances chapter didn't actually contain story content. Hope you guys don't mind! **

**Anyways, here's chappie 22!**

xxx

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

"_As you are all aware, there_ is a Gathering tonight," Smokestar announced. "However, there has been a strong scent of rogues around the lake again. I fear that the camp may be attacked while we are away. I'm leaving my strongest warriors in camp. All apprentices and elders are required to come."

Nightpaw bristled; if the rogues were attacking the camp, she wanted to be there to fight alongside her Clan!

"The warriors coming to the Gathering will be only a few—Flowerpetal, Mistysong, Rainpool, Poppyleaf, and Oakfoot." Smokestar glanced at each warrior as he spoke his or her name.

At first, Nightpaw was confused as to why Oakfoot wasn't going to be staying behind to defend the Clan. But she remembered how, the previous day, he'd twisted his paw while they were heading back to camp. There had been a clump of snow covering a hole in the ground, and he'd stepped right into it. It only made sense for him to come along; there was no way he could fight with a twisted paw.

"I also want warriors guarding the nursery and medicine den," Smokestar ordered.

Streampaw leaned over towards Nightpaw. "I think the camp is going to be attacked, too. I had a dream about it!"

Nightpaw widened her eyes. "A dream? What was it like?"

"Well, I was on the Gathering island, and I saw a pair of eyes in the darkness," Streampaw whispered. "I also smelled rogues. I think Smokestar is right, leaving our strongest warriors here."

"Perhaps he had the same dream," Nightpaw pointed out. "I'm nervous. I wish I could stay here and fight."

Streampaw shook her head. "I'm glad Smokestar is making it required for the apprentices to come. I wouldn't want you getting hurt. Or Shadepaw, or Hawkpaw."

Smokestar waved his tail, signaling that it was time to leave. Nightpaw fell into step with Streampaw and Stormpaw, feeling anxious to leave her Clan in its time of need. She understood why Smokestar was doing this; the apprentices and youngest warriors were probably too inexperienced to defend themselves against the rogues. But how would she ever gain experience if she never got to experience anything?

"Do you think the camp will be raided?" Stormpaw murmured to Nightpaw. She shrugged. "I really can't say at this point. What do you think?"

He sighed. "If the rogues were cruel enough to kill an innocent apprentice, they're cruel enough to attack a camp." He was referring to Fogpaw, and Nightpaw's heart twisted in pity for the dark gray tom.

As the group of ThunderClan cats neared the island, falling behind WindClan, Nightpaw felt her black pelt prickle. Something felt strange, incredibly strange. Was the camp being attacked at this very heartbeat?

By the smell of it, ThunderClan the last Clan to arrive. There was another scent mingled among the others…an earthy scent mixed with the scent of herbs.

"It smells a bit like wild garlic," Streampaw commented, cocking her head. "Perhaps one of the Clans was attacked by rats."

Nightpaw made her way across the log and stepped onto the island. She dipped her head to Streampaw, who went to join the other medicine cats, and followed Stormpaw to the group of ShadowClan and RiverClan apprentices she'd met at the last Gathering.

"Hey, Stormpaw, Nightpaw!" Kestrelpaw greeted. "Where's Fogpaw? Did he not get to come to this Gathering?"

Stormpaw stiffened. "Well…Fogpaw is…"

"He passed away," Nightpaw finished gently. Kestrelpaw widened his eyes. "Great StarClan! I'm so sorry, Stormpaw."

Larkpaw touched Stormpaw's shoulder with her tail-tip. "That must be so hard for you."

Nightpaw could tell he was relieved that no cat had asked how Fogpaw died. She sat down beside him, glancing around, still feeling uneasy. She couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong, and barely paid attention when the four leaders hushed the crowd of cats and began to deliver the news from each Clan.

A rustle in the bushes made Nightpaw jump. She narrowed her eyes in the darkness, trying to see if anything was there. _It's okay. It's probably just a bird, or something. Calm down._ Nightpaw drew in a deep breath in an attempt to calm herself down.

"Are you okay?" Stormpaw whispered into her ear.

Nightpaw nodded. "I just…I'm worried about the camp." She glanced up at the moon and felt her belly drop upon noticing that it was completely covered by clouds. No cats were fighting at the Gathering; what was StarClan angry about?

A screech sounded, and immediately the crowd broke into battle.

Nightpaw gasped as a WindClan cat leapt past her, battling with a cat that had an herby scent. She gazed around in horror, watching as Oakfoot raked his claws down the face of a huge black-and-white tom. What was going on? Who were these cats?

The rogues.

Nightpaw's blood ran cold.

Stormpaw nudged her with his muzzle. "Go! Hide in the bushes!"

"How are we going to get out?" Nightpaw asked, panicking. Stormpaw shoved her into the leaves of a nearby bush. "Stay there! I'll try to find a ThunderClan warrior!"

"Wait!" Nightpaw hissed. "Stormpaw!"

But the dark gray tom was gone. Nightpaw crouched in the leaves, watching as cats scrambled around the island, either locked in battle with a rogue or running for their lives.

"Nightpaw!"

A hiss beside her made Nightpaw jump. She unsheathed her claws and spun around, but sighed in relief upon realizing that it was just Minnowpaw. Her brother Mallowpaw was just behind her, his green eyes huge with fear.

"Are you all right?" Nightpaw sniffed the two apprentices all over.

"What's going on?" Minnowpaw looked like a scared rabbit. "Who are these cats?"

Nightpaw pushed the younger cats further into the bushes. "I think they're the rogues. Now be quiet, okay?"

Mallowpaw crouched low to the ground, his ears flat against his head. "I want to go back to camp!"

Flaring her nostrils, Nightpaw tasted the air. She could tell that there were other cats hiding in the bushes not too far away from her, but that they were all Clan cats. She beckoned Minnowpaw and Mallowpaw with her tail, leading them around the oak tree where the leaders sat during the Gathering. Nightpaw peered through a gap between a few leaves, searching for any of her Clanmates. To her despair, she didn't recognize any of the cats in her sight.

"Let's see if we can head to the fallen tree," Nightpaw whispered to the two apprentices behind her. They continued creeping through the undergrowth.

The scent of blood made Nightpaw's belly lurch, and her paw suddenly hit something furry and solid. It was almost impossible to see through the darkness, but she knew what it was—a body. Its scent told her that it was a former WindClan warrior.

Nightpaw sent a quick prayer to StarClan in regards to the fallen warrior and continued through the trees, keeping low to the ground. They were nearing the edge of the trees, and the log wasn't very far away from them. She peeked out through the leaves and gasped. Cats were battling along the log, tossing each other into the lake. Nightpaw gasped as she watched a small white tom thrashing in the water as he sank into the dark depths. Standing in front of the fallen tree was a group of warriors who were lashing out at any rogues who neared it but allowing Clan cats to pass.

"What are we going to do?" Minnowpaw whimpered, her fur on end. Nightpaw thought a moment. "We're just going to stay here. The rogues are probably going to retreat into the bushes when they're finished, so whenever the log is clear, we're going to make a run for it, okay?"

Someone suddenly crashed into her from behind. Nightpaw hissed, unsheathing her claws and preparing to defend herself and the two apprentices. A familiar scent washed over her and she sighed in relief. _Streampaw!_

Nightpaw rose to her paws, sniffing her sister all over. "Are you okay?"

"Nightpaw!" Streampaw gasped. "Thank StarClan, you're safe!" She turned and whispered into the bushes, "Petalpaw! You can come out now."

A ginger-and-white she-cat appeared from inside a bush. "Is it safe?"

Streampaw nodded. "Nightpaw, these cats are the rogues!"

"I know," Nightpaw replied. "They didn't attack the camp, they attacked the island! How are we going to get away safely?"

Streampaw shook her head. "I don't know. I can't find any of our Clanmates."

"Why are they attacking us?" Minnowpaw wondered aloud. "How did they even know we gathered here every full moon?"

"I guess they've been watching us," Nightpaw growled.

"Hello? Are there any Clan cats in here?"

A hushed voice made all five apprentices jump.

"Who is it?" Minnowpaw called out to the cat. Nightpaw hissed, swatting the apprentice over the ears. What if it was a rogue?

A broad-shouldered tom pushed his way into the bushes. Nightpaw's legs felt weak with relief as she recognized the scent as Brackenclaw's.

"Are any of you injured?" he asked, sniffing at them. Nightpaw shook her head. "No."

He beckoned the apprentices with his tail. "We're going to get you out of here. On the count of three, two apprentices are going to run in front of me towards the fallen tree. I'll be right behind you. Understand?"

The five cats nodded. Nightpaw nudged Minnowpaw and Mallowpaw to go first; she wanted to get them safe.

"All right, you two," Brackenclaw murmured, crouching down and preparing to run. "One, two, three!"

The three cats took off, bolting across the clearing towards the log. Brackenclaw hissed at a ginger rogue who tried to leap at the apprentices, swiping at her face with unsheathed claws. Nightpaw watched as the two apprentices made their way carefully across the now-clear log.

"Thank StarClan for Brackenclaw," Streampaw whispered as Brackenclaw bounded back into the bushes.

"Are you okay?" Nightpaw asked. Brackenclaw nodded and licked a scratch on his shoulder. "I'm fine. I'm going to take the three of you together, okay?"

Petalpaw dipped her head to him. "Thank you for taking me, too."

"You're on our side right now," Brackenclaw told her. He crouched down. "Ready?"

Nightpaw bunched up her muscles and sent a prayer to StarClan.

"One, two, three!"

Nightpaw pelted into the grassy clearing, eyes focused on the log. She felt claws suddenly rake her side and she let out a screech, stumbling a bit.

"Nightpaw!" Streampaw stopped to help her sister. Out of the corner of her eye, Nightpaw could see Brackenclaw battling with the cat that had attacked her. Nightpaw limped as fast as she could past the warriors who were guarding the exit and over to the log, where Swiftstar of RiverClan was helping cats across. She allowed Petalpaw and Streampaw to cross before she climbed onto it herself.

Once across, Nightpaw could finally breathe. The elders and remaining ThunderClan apprentices were huddled together beside Flowerpetal and Poppyleaf, their eyes wide with terror. But one apprentice was missing…

Stormpaw.

Nightpaw's heart leapt into her throat. "Where's Stormpaw?"

"He must be back on the island," Streampaw mewed, stroking her sister's back with her tail. Nightpaw turned, gazing at the island where cats were still battling each other, hissing and spitting, shrieks filling the night. _StarClan, please keep Stormpaw safe!_

"There's Smokestar!" Wingfeather, one of the elders, gasped. Nightpaw watched as the dark gray leader limped towards them, leaning on Rainpool's shoulder. There were three deep-looking gashes in his neck from which blood was pouring heavily.

Streampaw spun around, disappearing into the reeds and emerging with a few cobwebs. Rainpool laid Smokestar down on his uninjured side while Streampaw quickly began patting the thin webs down onto his wound. "There isn't much, but this should at least stop the bleeding until we get to camp." She turned to Rainpool. "Did he lose a life?"

She nodded, her blue eyes tainted with sadness. Nightpaw widened her eyes, padding over to her father and crouching down in front of his face.

He was breathing heavily, but was able to choke out, "Nightpaw…are you all right?"

Nightpaw nodded, licking him on the cheek. Shadepaw appeared beside her and followed suit.

When Smokestar regained his breath, he heaved himself to his paws. "Flowerpetal, I want you to lead these cats back to camp."

"You're not coming?" Poppyleaf gasped. "But what about your wound?"

Streampaw nodded. "It needs to be seen to by a real medicine cat!"

Smokestar sighed. "I won't leave until we've accounted for every ThunderClan cat that came to this Gathering."

Nightpaw drooped, worried for her father and leader, but trailed after her Clan away from the lake.

The sound of cats screeching and the scent of blood followed her the whole way back.

xxx

**OHMAISHIZ. Pretty intense stuff, hmm? If you haven't noticed yet, this book will have 25 chapters, plus an epilogue. Then it's time for Book Two! I'm so excited! :D By the way, what do you think happened to Stormpaw? How sweet was it that he risked his life to keep Nightpaw safe? Hope you guys enjoyed this chapter and have a fantastic day!**


	24. Chapter Twenty-Three

**Hi everyone! Shout-out to Professor Kake for following this fanfic! Thank you so much (: Here are some responses to your reviews:**

**Nayeli Kigaliss: I know, it's pretty crazy. 0_o Thanks for reviewing!**

**Guest: Wow, you've really been thinking hard about this! Unfortunately I just can't reveal anything yet…I don't want to spoil it. Thank you! (:**

**Professor Kake: Just keep reading! c; Thanks so much for reviewing and following this fanfic!**

**By the way, I think I'm only going to do 24 chapters for each book. I just like it better with an even number of chapters because then we get an equal amount of Nightpaw and Streampaw goodness, you know what I mean? SO…this is basically the second-to-last chapter. But there will be an epilogue. (: Here's chapter 23, which takes place the same night as the last chapter!**

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CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

_The scent of blood was overwhelming._ The whole Clan was in an uproar, completely in shock. Pebblefur and Streampaw quickly treated the elders that had returned, and then moved on to the apprentices.

"Nightpaw!" Streampaw called, beckoning the black she-cat over to the medicine den. She slowly padded up to her sister and sat down, eyes stained with grief.

Streampaw began to dress the gashes in her flank with a marigold-tormentil poultice. "Still worried about Stormpaw, hm?"

"Yes, and Smokestar. He looked really…rough." Nightpaw sighed.

Streampaw nodded, agreeing but not wanting to reveal to her that their father had lost a life. "I'm sure they're both fine. We're missing a lot of cats. Perhaps they're chasing the rogues off the island." She gently patted layers of cobweb onto the wound and turned to the herb stacks, searching for thyme. She grabbed a couple of leaves and passed it to her sister. "Chew these; they'll help calm your anxieties."

Nightpaw lapped the leaves into her mouth. "Thank you." She turned and padded out of the den, Streampaw at her heels. She immediately turned to another apprentice with a scratch and began to treat it.

The sound of wailing cats startled Streampaw, and she glanced up. Smokestar and Brackenclaw were limping into the camp, their heads low. They were both covered in scratches.

Pebblefur darted towards them and gasped. Streampaw felt her blood run cold. Dangling from Brackenclaw's mouth was the bloody, mangled form of Mistysong, the mother of Minnowpaw and Mallowpaw. In Smokestar's jaws was a smaller mass of dark gray fur, unrecognizable from all the blood matting it.

"No!" The cry came from Mousefoot, Mistysong's mate. He raced over to Brackenclaw, who was laying Mistysong down on the ground, and started to lick her cheek. Pebblefur followed and began sniffing at her.

"Is she alive?" Mousefoot asked, his voice tight with fear.

Pebblefur pressed his ear to Mistysong's chest and shook his head, a shadow of sadness clouding his eyes. Mousefoot let out a screech and buried his face into his former mate's silver fur.

Nightpaw let out a choked gasp. "That's…that's Stormpaw."

Streampaw darted over to him, Pebblefur already there sniffing at the tom. He gasped, his eyes wide. "He's alive, but barely." He turned to Brackenclaw. "Bring him into my den."

Brackenclaw lifted the bloodied apprentice into his jaws and carried him into the medicine den. Pebblefur glanced at Streampaw. "Stay out here. I need to focus on Stormpaw for now. Treat Smokestar's neck."

Streampaw nodded and grabbed her bundle of herbs, racing up to her leader, who was lying on the ground and panting. The cobweb that she'd applied earlier was soaked in blood, so she peeled it off and applied a large amount of marigold poultice along with a fresh layer of cobweb.

Smokestar heaved himself to his paws and made his way in front of his Clan. "There are two more bodies at the island. Splashfur, Snowstorm, I know it's getting late, but our Clanmates need to come home. Would you bring the bodies back here, please?"

The two senior warriors dipped their heads and slipped out of the camp.

As Streampaw applied some herbs to Brackenclaw's wounds, she sighed. Three lives had been lost that night; four, actually, counting Smokestar's lost life. She wondered how many losses there were from the other Clans.

Tilting her head to the sky, Streampaw gazed at the moon. It was still covered by clouds, as were most of the stars.

_StarClan, where are you?_

xxx

"Tonight we honor the lives of three of our Clanmates," Smokestar announced. "Mistysong, Oakfoot, and Sharpclaw, along with many lives from the other Clans."

Streampaw bowed her head; it was such a tragic night. She could feel exhaustion settling in her bones, but she knew she couldn't sleep yet. She was too worried about her Clanmates and tending to their wounds. The last thing they needed after a night like this was an infected wound.

"Before leaving, the other leaders and I discussed what to do," Smokestar continued, his voice weary-sounding. "We decided that, along with our deputies and medicine cats, we would meet in three sunrises at the island. Until then, RiverClan and WindClan will patrol it to ensure that there are no traces of rogue anywhere." He cast a long gaze at the three bodies laid on the ground. "Now, all we can do is mourn these cats and get some much-needed rest."

The Clan murmured amongst themselves as Smokestar climbed slowly down from the Highledge. A line formed to send prayers along with their Clanmates' spirits to StarClan. Before Streampaw could step in line, she noticed Pebblefur beckoning her from inside his den. She bounded across the clearing and pushed her way in. "What's going on? Is Stormpaw okay?"

Pebblefur hushed her. "He's finally asleep. He's in a lot of pain."

Streampaw glanced at the young tom. His left forepaw was swathed in cobwebs, along with some thick scratches across his shoulder. His ear also had a few nicks in it. Streampaw sniffed at his forepaw. "What happened to him?"

"His forepaw is sprained pretty badly," Pebblefur explained. "I've never seen a sprain this bad. I'm not sure how he could have done it, and he was in too much pain to reply to me, so I guess we'll have to ask him when he's come to. But for now, we must leave him alone and let his body heal."

"But…he's going to live, right?" Streampaw could see his flank rising and falling, but it was very shallow and quick.

"At this point, I can't say. He's lost a lot of blood." Pebblefur sighed. "His fate is in the paws of StarClan right now."

Streampaw nodded. "Well, if you want to come say a few last words to the fallen cats, now is the time to do it." She turned and headed out of the den, Pebblefur following her.

"How is he doing?" Nightpaw gasped, startling Streampaw. She yelped. "How long have you been out here?"

Nightpaw stuck her head into the den, trying to catch a glimpse of Stormpaw. Pebblefur stepped in front of her. "He needs to rest. He's sprained his paw badly and has some serious scratches."

"He's alive?" Nightpaw's eyes lit up. "Thank you, Pebblefur. You saved his life."

Streampaw exchanged an unsure glance with Pebblefur, but Nightpaw didn't seem to notice. She stared at her paws. "I can't believe Oakfoot is dead. He was such a great mentor for the half a moon that I had him."

"I can't believe this has happened at all," Pebblefur meowed, shaking his head. "Everything seems so surreal. It really proves that these rogues are out for us."

Streampaw remembered the dream she'd had at the Moonpool. She had been standing on the island, the moon covered by branches, and a pair of yellow eyes had blinked at her through the darkness. That dream wasn't a warning that the rogues would attack the camp; it had been warning her that they would attack the _Gathering!_ Streampaw longed to discuss it with her sister, but there was no way she would mention it in front of Pebblefur.

At the same time, Streampaw felt guilty and slightly responsible for this whole ordeal. What if she had chosen to report her dream to Smokestar and Pebblefur? Would they have interpreted it differently, and gone to the Gathering armed with their strongest warriors?

A chill ran up Streampaw's spine; she was the only cat who could have prevented this. Now three cats were dead. Smokestar had lost a life. Stormpaw was in a critical condition. _Next time,_ she vowed to herself, _I'll tell them about my dream. I _have_ to. Clearly, Nightpaw and I have been blessed with this gift, and we need to make good use out of it._

She watched as the stronger warriors who hadn't been involved in the battle carefully placed the three bodies into the holes that they'd dug up. Pebblefur placed a few sprigs of mint and rosemary into the holes to cover the scent of death.

_Mistysong, Oakfoot, Sharpclaw. _Streampaw's heart twisted with guilt. _Smokestar, Stormpaw. I'm so sorry this happened to you. I'll make sure that no cat ever gets hurt because of my decisions again!_

xxx

Streampaw tossed and turned in her sleep that night, horrible dreams plaguing her mind. In one dream, Streampaw was at the Gathering island again, sitting on the branch on the huge oak tree that the leaders sat on during their announcements. The scent of blood and death filled the air, along with shrieks and yowls of cats in battle. Cats from her Clan were crying out, "Streampaw, help us! Help us!" Even Nightpaw was there, her ears shredded and eyes bleeding, wailing for her sister's help. Streampaw tried to move, but it was as though her paws were stuck to the branch.

She finally sat up in her nest, panting. The other apprentices were fast asleep, and she noticed that for once, Hawkpaw was still and his limbs weren't twitching.

Streampaw emerged from the den, gasping at the sharp coldness of the air. It had definitely gotten chillier since she'd last been in the clearing. It was just past moonhigh, and the full moon looked foggy as a few wisps of cloud floated in front of it.

Bundling up her fur, Streampaw sat just outside the apprentices' den, watching at the cats who were keeping vigil with their lost loved one. Larchwing, Oakfoot's sister, and Applefrost, his mate, were crouched over his body along with Nightpaw. Minnowpaw, Mallowpaw, and Mousefoot had their noses pressed to Mistysong's silver pelt. Sharpclaw's body was surrounded by cats as well; the remaining elders along with Splashfur, who had been his apprentice, leaned over it with their eyes closed, unmoving.

Streampaw sighed, her gaze travelling to the camp entrance, where Graystream sat keeping guard. How had these rogues known about the Gathering? Where did they come from? Why had StarClan chosen Nightpaw and her to receive these foretelling dreams? Questions buzzed through her mind like a swarm of angry bees, and she longed to visit the Moonpool again and talk to Leafpool.

A low moan split the silence, and Streampaw jumped, her eyes wide and ears pricked. Had that come from the nursery? She glanced at the brambly den. Quailfeather suddenly darted from the entrance and over to the medicine den, disappearing inside. Was something wrong?

The queen emerged a few heartbeats later with Pebblefur, who was carrying a mouthful of herbs in his jaws. Upon noticing Streampaw sitting outside the apprentices' den, he beckoned her with his tail. Streampaw followed the two cats into the nursery, where Berrywhisker was stretched out in her nest, panting.

"What's going on?" Streampaw asked, but she had a feeling she already knew. Pebblefur passed a few herbs to Berrywhisker. "This is going to be your first birthing experience. Berrywhisker is having her kits!"

xxx

**Not much of a cliffie, I know. I also know that it's kind of early for her to have her kits, but whatever. Sorry that this chapter was so poorly written. I feel like it was really choppy and just all over the place, but isn't that kind of how it is after a battle? The next chapter is the last chapter of this book, besides the epilogue! Thanks for reading and have an amazing day! (:**


	25. Chapter Twenty-Four

**OMG the last chapter…how sad! It's kind of bad, but I still don't have a name for the next book. I'm working on it, though. Shout-out to Silverstone of Thunderclan for favorite-ing and following this fanfic! Thank you so much! (: Replies to your reviews:**

**WyldClaw: Thanks a ton for reviewing! Just keep on reading :D**

**Nayeli Kigaliss: Yep, tough times! LOL thanks for reviewing!**

**Here it is! Chapter 24!**

xxx

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

_For the first time in a_ while, Nightpaw awoke in a good mood. It had been three days since the Gathering, and the Clan was slowly recovering. Patrols were sent out constantly, tiring out every cat and making it hard to squeeze in training and hunting. Yet, Nightpaw feeling much better than before that morning. She hadn't had any nightmares in a while, leading her to think that everything was going to be okay.

She gave herself a quick grooming and emerged from the apprentices' den. Brackenclaw was just sending out a patrol, while Blazepaw and Emberpaw were getting ready to head out to train.

Nightpaw quickly made her way to the medicine den and poked her head inside. Pebblefur was rewrapping Stormpaw's injured paw with cobweb.

"How is he doing?" Nightpaw whispered. Pebblefur glanced up and smiled at her. "He's doing well. I think he's going to be just fine."

Nightpaw gazed at her friend, who was still asleep, and longed to talk to him again, longed to thank him. Sighing, she dipped her head to Pebblefur and headed back into the clearing. Snowstorm was grabbing a piece of fresh-kill from the pile and waved his tail when he saw her. "Nightpaw, get something to eat and then we'll head out training."

Nightpaw nodded eagerly; this was her first training session with her new mentor! Although he'd just finished mentoring Rainpool, Smokestar had asked him to finish her training where Dustclaw and Oakfoot had left off. She grabbed a starling, small enough for one cat, from the pile and settled beside the warriors' den to eat.

Streampaw emerged from the apprentices' den, looking like she was in a great mood as well.

"Streampaw!" Nightpaw called to her sister. The gray she-cat turned and trotted up to her, sitting down beside her. "Good morning, Nightpaw. It feels a bit warmer today, doesn't it?"

Nightpaw nodded. "It does, I think. Haven't had any nightmares lately?"

"No, actually." Streampaw arched her back in a stretch. "It's been nice having normal dreams, for once. Did you know that what happened at the Gathering has a name now? Every cat is calling it the Island Massacre."

"Wow. That name is certainly fitting." Nightpaw didn't really want to talk about it. She quickly finished off her starling and rose to her paws. "Well, I'm off to my first training session with Snowstorm."

"Good luck!" Streampaw purred. "I'm sure he'll be impressed."

Nightpaw licked her sister on the cheek. "Thanks. See you later!" She turned and bounded over to the large white tom, who was standing at the entrance to the thorn tunnel. He glanced down at her with sparkling blue eyes. "Ready?"

"Yes!" Nightpaw nodded. "Let's go!"

The two took off together into the forest.

xxx

"Whew, I'm bushed!" Nightpaw flopped to the ground beside Shadepaw and Streampaw. "After battle training all day, I had to go on a border patrol."

Shadepaw nodded, sighing. "I'm exhausted, too! I was on the moonhigh patrol all last night. Then I had to go hunting at sunhigh!"

Streampaw purred in amusement. "At least we know that the Clan is recovering and getting even stronger."

A few squeaks from the nursery made Nightpaw prick her ears. "Hey, I haven't seen Berrywhisker's kits yet. Why don't we bring her some fresh-kill and meet them?"

Shadepaw leapt to her paws and darted over to the fresh-kill pile, returning with a squirrel in her jaws. "She loves squirrels!"

Nightpaw and Streampaw twitched their whiskers, following their sister into the nursery.

The scent of milk hung thickly in the warm air, and Nightpaw remembered what it was like being a kit in the nursery.

"Hi, Berrywhisker," Shadepaw mewed, placing the squirrel at the queen's paws. "We brought you some fresh-kill."

Berrywhisker glanced up from grooming herself. "Oh, thank you! I love squirrel."

"What did I tell you?" Shadepaw murmured to her sisters, making them chuckle. Streampaw gazed at the three kits beside her belly. "How are they doing?"

"Wonderfully, thanks to you and Pebblefur," Berrywhisker replied warmly. Nightpaw smiled as one of them yawned and nestled its tiny muzzle back into the crook of its mother's belly. "What are their names?"

Berrywhisker glanced down at them lovingly. "The cream-colored tom is Rowankit, the gray-and-white tom is Drizzlekit, and the gray tabby she-cat is Mintkit."

"Those are great names," Nightpaw purred. "They're going to be great warriors, I bet."

Streampaw grinned. "Aren't they so cute?"

"Oh, that's right. This was the first litter of kits that you helped deliver!" Shadepaw mewed. "These kits must be very special to you, then."

Berrywhisker's pale green eyes twinkled. "I bet you two will be warriors by the time they're apprentices. Maybe you'll be chosen to mentor one."

"Really?" Nightpaw beamed. "I would love to. They look so strong already."

Berrywhisker nodded. "Now, if you don't mind, I'm going to eat this delicious-looking squirrel."

"Bye!" Shadepaw waved her tail. "Thank you for letting us see the kits!"

"Thank you for bringing me fresh-kill," she purred.

The three apprentices padded out of the nursery, Nightpaw's mind buzzing with excitement. What if she really _did _get to mentor one of them? She couldn't imagine herself training an apprentice!

"Nightpaw!"

She glanced up to see Pebblefur's head sticking out of the medicine den, his eyes wide. Her belly lurched; was something wrong with Stormpaw? She darted across the clearing into his den. "What's going on?"

"Hey, Nightpaw," came a croaking voice in reply. She glanced down and gasped. Stormpaw's eyes were cracked open and his head was just barely lifted out of his nest.

"Stormpaw!" she choked out. "How…how are you feeling?"

Stormpaw licked his lips. "Thirsty."

"I'll get you some water!" Nightpaw grabbed a ball of moss, soaked it in the small pool near the herb stacks, and held it above his muzzle, squeezing it. Stormpaw opened his mouth and let the water slip onto his tongue. "Thank you."

"Thank _you,_ Stormpaw." Nightpaw's chest tightened with gratitude. "You saved my life at the Gathering."

Stormpaw narrowed his eyes as if thinking. "I did? I don't really remember much about it. Pebblefur told me I was injured pretty badly, but…"

Nightpaw nodded. "Yeah. You sprained your paw."

"What if this delays my warrior ceremony?" Stormpaw sighed. "Whatever I did must've been pretty mousebrained, huh?"

"No!" Nightpaw shook her head furiously. "You saved my life! I don't know about you, but I don't consider that to be mousebrained. I think it's more like…brave."

"Were any other cats injured?"

Nightpaw tensed. "Well yes, lots of cats were injured. Cats of all Clans. It's been named The Island Massacre. But we…we lost three cats."

Stormpaw widened his eyes. "Great StarClan. Who?"

"Mistysong, Oakfoot, and Sharpclaw." Nightpaw felt grief crash over her as she remembered the fallen cats. "And we almost lost you."

Stormpaw gave a weak grin. "But you didn't. I'm right here."

"No thanks to me." Nightpaw frowned. "I was so worried about you."

"I'm going to be all right, I think." Stormpaw lifted his head, stretching his neck up, and licked her on the cheek.

Pebblefur pushed his way into the den. "He needs to rest now. Sorry, Nightpaw."

"Thank you." Nightpaw dipped her head to the medicine cat and left the den, her heart thudding in her chest.

xxx

Nightpaw gazed over the lake, peace washing over her like a gentle breeze. Its surface was still and black like the night sky. Cricket song surrounded her and she even heard a few frogs croaking nearby. The reeds and cattails bobbed in the warm breeze and the surface of the lake rippled slightly.

_A normal dream,_ she thought happily, but in the back of her mind Nightpaw knew that whenever a dream of hers started out at the lake, it didn't end well.

But nothing was happening. The moon was bright and smooth, a thousand warrior ancestors glimmered in Silverpelt overhead, and there weren't any strange scents around her.

_Perhaps StarClan is telling me that everything is over,_ Nightpaw thought. _Perhaps the rogues got their revenge. _She jolted. _But what about the prophecy? Surely it hasn't been fulfilled yet._

Dread swept over Nightpaw with the next gentle breeze, and she turned to face the forest. It was so dark that she could barely make out the bushes and trees. An all-too-familiar scent hit her nose—rogue scent.

Suddenly, a pair of yellow eyes blinked at her through the darkness. Nightpaw longed to leap out at this cat invading her territory. Then, to her surprise a second pair of eyes appeared beside the yellow ones, this time icy blue.

Another breeze ruffled her fur and she shivered as a low murmur graced her ears: _"It's not over yet. We've only just begun."_

xxx

**WOW pretty intense, hm? Sorry for the EXTREMELY short chapter. I was literally all out of things to say and I didn't want to start any new ideas because, of course, being the last chapter, it had to have a sense of resolution. But I just had to slip that little suspenseful cliffie at the end there x] sooo what did you guys think? The epilogue is up next and I'm pretty excited for it. Hope you guys enjoyed and don't forget to REVIEW! Have a great day! (:**


	26. Epilogue

**Hey, all. THE EPILOGUE IS HERE! Believe it or not, I'm still trying to think of a title for the next book. I guess I should've started planning that sooner…**

**Gingerkit: Thank you! c:**

**I'm so excited to write this epilogue. It has nothing to do with the Clans, so it's kind of nice to have a change. Hope you enjoy!**

xxx

EPILOGUE

_A tiny brown field mouse skittered_ past him. Reaching out with a powerful paw, Claw killed it and held it up, dangling it in front of his face. "Now, how did you get down here, you puny thing?" He devoured it in one bite, tossing the bones into the large pile that nearly reached the ceiling.

"Claw?" came a voice outside the lichen-covered entrance.

Claw rose to his paws, tasting the air and identifying who it was. There were two cats, one with an unfamiliar scent. And also, the smell of kits? "Come in, Talon."

A large black-and-white tom stepped into the hollow cave. "I found a queen at Station 6. She has two young kits, and appears to be pretty feisty." He grinned.

Claw nodded, pleased to have company. "All right, bring them in."

"Dawn!" Talon called. A slender tortoiseshell she-cat and two kits slipped into the hollow, gazing around in awe. "This place is amazing. You created all this?"

"Our ancestors did," Claw responded. "My name is Claw. It's nice to meet you, Dawn." He crouched down to her kits' level. "Hello, there."

"Back off!" the little black tom hissed, stepping in front of his sister.

"Crow, that's no way to treat a stranger," Dawn scolded.

_Time for the test,_ Claw thought, grinning. He hissed at the two kits, baring his teeth and bristling. The little tortoiseshell she-cat squealed and darted behind her mother, while the Crow stood firmly. Dawn leapt in front of her son, growling, and swiped at Claw's face. He dodged her blow easily.

Claw laughed and glanced at Talon. "She _is_ a feisty one, isn't she? Willing to protect her kits at any cost. How nice." He sat back on his haunches and glanced back at Dawn, who had ushered her kits towards the wall. "Don't worry, sweets, I was only testing you. We don't let just any cat join the Hidden Claws, and you seem like a good candidate. Now let me ask you…are you willing to fight?"

"What will happen to my kits?" Dawn asked, bristling.

Claw shrugged. "Depends. How old are they?"

"Three moons."

"Ahh, the perfect age to begin training."

"Training?" Dawn pricked her ears. "Why, they're far too young to learn how to fight!"

Talon stepped in. "Our ancestors have developed a training program suitable for kits. At three moons, the training is more mental rather than physical. They'll learn a couple of basic battle techniques and a little bit of hunting, but the real fighting comes around four moons."

"That's right." Claw nodded.

Dawn still looked a bit wary. "What will happen to me?"

"Well, we would have to fully assess you," he explained. "If you pass, you'll move onto the intensive training level, where grown cats learn to fight. Of course, it's much more ideal to start as a kit and move upwards, but since you weren't given that option…the intensive training level will have to do."

"And all this learning how to fight…in exchange for what?"

"A constant supply of fresh-kill, water, shelter, and protection." Claw grinned. "Being part of a large group such as the Hidden Claws is the best way to go in terms of safety. It's sort of like a little…clan, if you will. We all work toward the general well-being of the group."

Dawn looked deep in thought. "That does sound nice…all right. I think I'll try it out."

"Oh, there are no trial runs," Claw chuckled. "Either you're in it wholeheartedly, or you're not. There's no going back, so if this isn't the sort of lifestyle for you and your kits, you'd best make your way to the exit."

Dawn widened her eyes and nodded. "I think I would like to be a member."

"Perfect." Claw smiled. "Now, if you'd head right through this entryway, someone in the clearing will be able to help you. Thank you."

Talon ushered Dawn and her two kits out of the hollow and turned to Claw. "Well! I'd say we did an excellent job this time, what do you think?"

Claw didn't respond; he sighed and sat down in his nest, deep in thought.

Talon knew what was on his leader's mind. "Claw, you can't continue to beat yourself up for what happened at the island. We did extremely well, actually."

"I didn't find any of them," Claw muttered, shaking his head. "I know they were there, Talon. Target Three told me that he, along with his sisters, would be attending. But I couldn't find any of them. I searched all over the island!"

Talon frowned and sat down, curling his tail over his massive paws. "I hate to say this, but…I think you're going to have to decide what your top priority is: getting rid of the Clans, or getting rid of these three cats."

Claw snarled at his second-in-command, thrusting his muzzle in front of his. "How dare you speak to me in such a manor?"

Talon didn't flinch, clearly used to his outbursts. "If we get rid of the Clans, it's going to be much easier to get rid of the Targets. The Clans are a strong force. We suffered quite a few injuries from the invasion, and that wasn't even the whole of each Clan! If we destroy the Clans first, getting to the Targets will be so much easier."

"But…" Claw backed up, thinking. "I think you're right, Talon. I think I need to get my priorities straight and figure out which route I'm going to take first. Clearly, there's no killing two birds with one stone in this situation. I've got to bring them down one by one, starting with those who completely destroyed our lives in the very beginning of it all—the Clans."

xxx

**That was so much fun to write! I know it was short, but I couldn't make it too long because it's kind of equivalent of the prologue. :D Okay guys, that wraps up Book One: Ignorance is Bliss! It's a little sad, but I'm super excited for the next book. That's where things really start to get interesting. Do you guys understand the title, by the way? 'Ignorance is bliss' is kind of a well-known saying, and I liked it because Nightpaw and Streampaw are blissfully unaware of who they are and where they come from. I hope you guys understood it. And the 'living a lie' part is pretty obvious as well. **

**Thank you to all my kind, amazing reviewers, followers, and favorite-ers! I wouldn't have been able to complete this book without you. I hope I made it interesting and I constantly had you guys in mind, wondering **_**what would my readers like to see?**_** I hope you enjoyed, and have an awesome day. See you in ****Living a Lie Book Two: A Quest for Answers!**** c:**

**-The Unheard Song**


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